Trojans' offense, defense make a winning combo

By DAVE HANNEMAN It seemed such small item on the play-by-play sheet at the time. Highly-touted Toledo Central Catholic, Ohio's reigning Division II state champion, faced a fourth-and-2 from the Findlay 9-yard line early in the second quarter of the 2023 season opener. The Irish went for it. They didn't get it. That one play didn't stop Central Catholic, rated the fourth best team – all divisions – in Ohio and 57th nationally by High School Football America, from posting a 47-14 win over Findlay. It's a play, though, that has stuck with FHS coach Stefan Adams. "We had that goal line stand against Central. A week later we had, what, two against Lima Senior?" Adams said. "Defensively, it took some time, but the mix of good coaching with kids who care ... I think we're really starting to see the fruits of their labor the last few weeks. "I'd say this even if he (defensive coordinator Jerrod Slater) wasn't sitting right next to me right now, but he and his staff have done a phenomenal job with technique and getting the most out of the kids he has and getting them into that defensive mentality." With four-star quarterback prospect Ryan Montgomery slinging the football to a talented group of receivers, it was expected Findlay would move up and down the field and put points on the board. That's panned out, with the Trojans, despite the loss to TCC, averaging 409.7 yards and 35.3 points a game. In back-to-back wins over Lima Senior (43-0) and Sylvania Southview (49-14) that offense was complemented by defensive efforts that put the Trojans in control and the opposition in the hole early. "As football coaches we get a lot of the credit," said Slater, a former head coach at Marion Harding and currently an intervention specialist for Findlay City Schools who is in his second year as defensive coordinator. "But I just look at the play sheet and make the call. The kids are the ones that go out and execute, and we have a great group of kids who want to run around and get to the football." Offensively, Findlay wasn't perfect against Lima Senior. Montgomery's first pass of the game was picked off. The Trojans third possession ended with a punt. The defense was pitching a shutout, though. Lima Senior had seven offensive possessions in the first half. Four ended in punts, one with a fourth-down stop, another with an interception and the final one when the second-quarter clock ran out. Findlay led 28-0 at the half, tacked on another score on the first play of the third quarter and had it on cruise-control from then on. Findlay's win over Southview was even more indicative of how an efficient offense and a lockdown defense can put a team in total control. With Montgomery on his way to setting a single-game passing record, Findlay scored on six straight possessions with drives covering 69, 67, 63, 75, 75 and 80 yards. The defense allowed one hiccup, a 65-yard touchdown where Southview's Isaac Sexton got to the edge, turned the corner and outran everyone to the end zone. Southview ran at least five plays on its five other first-half possessions, but never more than eight. Three of those drives ended in punts; the other two with fourth-down stops. Findlay led 42-7 at the half and again had the big lead that forces opposing teams away from their game plan. "If you get out to that early lead, teams might feel they have to score on every possession instead of being comfortable in their offense," Adams said. "Scoring early like that puts a lot of pressure on teams. We've doing that well, but we don't want to be satisfied where we're at. There's still a lot of games to play and I still want us to be hungry." Findlay will look to extend its two-game win streak on Friday when the Trojans (2-1) face Oregon Clay (2-1) in a Northern Lakes League cross-over game at Donnell Stadium. In a season where Findlay will face a number of multi-talented quarterbacks the Trojans will be up against one of the best in Clay's Mason Heintschel. Already holding a Division I offer from Toledo, the 6-foot, 200-pound junior led the Three Rivers Athletic Conference in passing last season (202-of-291, 2,493 yards, 24 TDs) and is off to another strong start with 863 yards and 10 TDs through three games. Clutch as well as accurate, Heintschel kept the final play alive long enough to toss a game-winning TD pass in Clay's 33-32 win over Sandusky, then threw for 273 yards and four scores and engineered another late drove in a 42-35 win over Sylvania Northview. "(Heintschel) has a little different skill set that Ryan (Montgomery)," Adams said. "He's a really good athlete, and that presents a whole nother level of challenges as far as discipline and being where you're supposed to be when you're supposed to be there to make plays." "We have a tough task this week," Slater said. "This quarterback, he's special. We have to try to keep him contained. "If that means we have to blitz and bring pressure, we'll blitz and bring pressure. If that means we have to rush three and drop eight (into coverage) we'll rush three and drop eight.' "Defensively, we'll do whatever we need to do. It's not so much about three-and-outs as getting stops at critical times."