Rivals Findlay, Ross clash in historic 100th meeting

It will be one for the history books when Findlay and Fremont Ross square off Friday night. It might be one for the record books as well. Undefeated Fremont Ross, 5-0, ranked 12th among Ohio's Division II schools and featuring a record-breaking squadron of athletes, will welcome Findlay to Don Paul Stadium on Friday for the 100th meeting in a long and storied history between the two schools. "The 100th meeting. A big rivalry game. The history of it all … I expect it's going to be a fantastic atmosphere," said FHS coach Stefan Adams. The Trojans and Little Giants have been league rivals from the days of the Buckeye League (1935-1954) to the Buckeye Conference (1954-1986), the Buckeye Central Conference (1987-1994), the Great Lakes League (1995-2002), the Greater Buckeye Conference (2003-2010) and currently the Three Rivers Athletic Conference (2011-present). Findlay has won eight of the last 11 meetings with Ross, but trails 58-38-3 in the overall series. Before winning the Heisman Trophy with Michigan in 1997 and a Super Bowl title with Green Bay in 2011, Charles Woodson led Fremont Ross to three straight wins over Findlay in the early 1990s. Before guiding Pittsburgh to two Super Bowl championships, Ben Roethlisberger once threw a state-record eight TD passes in a game against the little Giants. The matchup has featured some marquee players, and will again on Friday with Ross senior quarterback Kaden Holmes and a standout corps of receivers including Bryson Hammer, Adam Hrynciw and Anthony Vann headlining the group. A four-year starter, Holmes was the Three Rivers Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year last season when he had 2,818 yards passing, almost 1,000 rushing and accounted for 45 total touchdowns. Extending his school passing records with every completion, Holmes could approach 10,000 career passing yards and 150 total TDs. When the conversation turns to candidates for Ohio's 2022 Mr. Football Award, Holmes name is usually near the top of the list. Hammer is on pace to haul in 200 career receptions. A two-time all-Ohioan, the 5-11, 175-pound senior caught 80 passes for 927 yards and 10 TDs last season. Hrynciw (6-3, 180, sr.) also caught 10 TD passes. The school single-season record for TD receptions, though, belongs to Vann, a 6-3, 186-pound senior who hauled in 12 in 2020. "They have weapons, that's the bottom line," Adams said. "Their quarterback has been a little more of a runner this year. Their receivers are spread out, and very confident skill-wise. They are really going to challenge us on the back end. "They keep it simple, and they let their athletes do their job." Findlay will have a marquee presence in sophomore Ryan Montgomery, a four-star quarterback prospect who has already received offers from many of the top college programs in the country. Montgomery injured his hand late in the second quarter of last week's game with Toledo Whitmer. He did not return to the game, but Adams said he is good to go on Friday. "It was just at a point in the game (Findlay trailed 21-7) where it was hurting enough that if he tried to push through it and keep playing it could make it worse," Adams said. "He's good though. He's ready to go." Fremont Ross also started 5-0 a year ago. That streak ended with a 34-14 loss to Findlay. "You know, last year we had a bunch of guys," Adams said. "We had Max Roth, we had Ben Ireland, there was Justin Roth, Terrion Ross, Trace Robinson … That's their group this year, a group that has had success since middle school. Kaden (Holmes) started as a freshman; those other guys have been playing since they were sophomores." The turnover in personnel from 2021 to 2022 has Findlay fielding a younger, less experienced team this season. A brutal schedule has prioritized the maturation process, with the Trojans going 1-4 overall and 0-2 in the TRAC in their first five games. "Although we have some prime-time players, we've got a lot of young guys out there," Adams said. "We have a lot of guys learning right now, but we're at a point now where there are no excuses. You've started four, five games. You've played in some really big games. "At the end of the day, we're privileged as a community and as a program to be playing games like this. Our schedule has to be right up there. We know who we're up against. We've gone against some of the best, and we still have some really good teams coming up. "Yeah, it's tough. But that's why you play football games. I've been saying we have good guys, we have good quality, we have good pieces. We've had some highs, we've had some lows. But I think we're battle-tested and hopefully ready to move on from here. "I'm really excited about this next stretch of the season."