Buckeye Division title on line for Trojans

Game 1 of the 2023 football season was 10 weeks ago. Then again, Stefan Adams considers Friday's game at Donnell Stadium against Sylvania Northview to be Game 1 as well. "Our goal every week is to be 1-0," Adams said. "The kids know what's at stake. They know what they want. Our process has not changed, and I made it very, very clear that this is another opportunity to cement what that process has done as far as the results we got the last nine weeks." The results Findlay has gotten can be considered elevating. The Trojans did not get a single first-place vote in a preseason poll of Northern Lakes League Buckeye Division coaches. Toledo Whitmer got three, Anthony Wayne two and Perrysburg one. The predictions seemed accurate when Findlay, despite an early 14-0 lead, lost an 18-14 decision to Anthony Wayne. Instead of folding, Findlay flourished, beating Perrysburg (42-35) and Whitmer (40-14) – both on the road – to forge a three-way tie for first place in the Buckeye Division. The Buckeye Division championship will be decided – or divided – Friday when all three league games will have a direct impact on who gets to take home some hardware. Findlay, 7-2 overall and 3-1 in conference games, will win at least a share of the title if the Trojans beat Sylvania Northview (2-7, 1-3 NLL). Whitmer (6-3, 3-1 NLL) also gains a share if the Panthers defeat Springfield (2-7, 0-4 NLL). Anthony Wayne (7-2, 3-1 NLL) can also earn a piece of the crown, but would have to beat Perrysburg (7-2, 2-2 NLL) in its Week 10 matchup. Findlay finds itself in an interesting dynamic heading into Friday's game. The last three weeks, the Trojans have been an underdog challenging one of the league's preseason favorites. Now they are one of the top dogs hoping to avoid the kind of outcome they just dished out against Perrysburg and Whitmer. The first thing, Adams said, is to disregard Northview's 2-7 record. "Records are distractions," were Adams' exact words. "You need to eliminate distractions and worry about the process." Like Findlay, Northview relies heavily on the passing game. Quarterback Boston Vargas has thrown for 1,066 yards and has a deep threat in Connor Cody, who has averaged 20.1 yards per catch and scored seven touchdowns. Andrew Fineske (38 receptions), Jackson Clausius (18) and Brayden Schade (16) are more short-yard possession receivers, averaging 7.4, 10.0 and 9.4 yards per catch respectively. Vargas also leads Northview in rushing (368 yards), along with Quinton Wilson (310 yards). Adams expects to see plenty of Vargas ... and more. "We expect some wacky, we expect something unexpected, we expect to see some things we've probably not seen this year," Adams said. "It's hard to put yourself in the mind-set of another coach, but they have nothing to lose. I love the situation we're in, but that's why we have to stay focused and be prepared for everything." Northview will have to contend with the top passing attack in the league. Junior quarterback Ryan Montgomery has competed 208-of-310 passes for 2,782 yards and 31 touchdowns. He's also rushed for 193 yards and seven scores. Tops on the receiving end of those throws have been Ja'vonte Hill (66 receptions, 1,011 yards, 14 TDs), Jacob Ragland (31, 648, 5 TDs), Austin Hasselbach (40, 503, 6 TDs) and Ben Best (28, 333, 1 TD). Defensively, Luke Weihrauch leads Findlay with 77 total tackles. Isaac Tuiloma and Campbell Layne have 51 tackles each, Nate Riegle has 36, Israel Moore 30, Ashton Yeager 28, Baret Helms 27, and Keegan Klotz 25. Riegle and Klotz both have four sacks, with Weihrauch, Elijah Johnson and Layne all having three. It was a combination of offensive firepower and defensive play that earned Findlay a shot at a league championship, no matter what the predictions were. "It's been an emotional year, so much about what we are trying to establish," Adams said. "We talk about that stuff. We may have been counted out, but that's not so much on everybody else as it is about ourselves. We want to change the perception of who we are and who we want to be and where we're going. "It's a road, and it's not easy. This is hard, and we want the kids to enjoy this because of all the hard work that goes into it. To get the opportunity to play for a league championship, I think that says a lot about the mental toughness of these kids, how much stronger they are and where we are as a program." NOTES: --- Findlay last won a football league championship in 2011, but that title came with an asterisk. In the first year of the Three Rivers Athletic Conference, the Trojans lost one league game, 49-23, to Whitmer. It was later determined that Whitmer had used an ineligible player, the OHSAA ruled the Panthers must forfeit all of their wins and every team in the TRAC moved up a notch in the standings, elevating Findlay from second to first. Before that, Findlay won a Greater Buckeye Conference championship in 2009, sharing that title with Napoleon and Sandusky after all three went 4-1 in GBC play. --- Friday's game will be the fourth between Findlay and Sylvania Northview. The two schools split a pair of games when both were members of the Great Lakes League, Findlay winning the first contest 21-7 and Northview winning the rematch 7-6 a year later. The Trojans and Wildcats didn't meet again until the 2003 playoffs, with Findlay posting a 56-14 first-round victory. --- Findlay's win over Perrysburg boosted the Trojans to the No. 3 spot in the Division I, Region 2 rankings. The top eight teams in each of Ohio's 28 regions will host first-round playoff games next Friday. Northview has an added incentive as far as playoff possibilities go. The Wildcats are currently 18th in the Division II, Region 6 rankings. Beating a 7-2 Division I team like Findlay, though, would likely generate enough Harbin points to get Northview into the playoffs.