Sunday, July 7, 2019

Triv's Top Regular Season Wins (2000-2010)

In February, the legendary Steve Trivisonno announced that 2019 would be his last as coach of the Cardinals. Coach Triv, a Mentor graduate, began coaching here in 1997. Over his past 22 seasons, Mentor has experienced 166 regular season wins, 31 playoff wins, five Region 1 titles, and four state runner-ups, and two Mr. Footballs. With the many regular season wins under Coach Trivisonno's belt, it wasn't easy to try and pick out a top ten. 

For the regular season, the wins I chose were games that were important for a variety of potential reasons. Maybe it was a win over an elite quality opponent. Maybe it was a program-defining win that helped give Mentor football some additional cachet. Maybe it was gutting out a big road win despite injuries. Or maybe, it was just one of those unforgettable, record-setting victories. 

In date order, here is the first part of my list of the most memorable regular season victories:

Mentor 48 Glenville 33 (2002): During the season, Triv touted the 2002 team as the best Mentor team since the 60's. The 2002 Glenville team featured plenty of stars highlighted by an electric trio of defensive backs headed to Ohio State: Ted Ginn Jr., Donte Whitner, and Dareus Hiley. Mentor had not been competitive in the previous few years against Ted Ginn Sr.'s dynamic and speedy squads. But this year, things were different. QB Thom Abbott picked apart that uber-talented secondary on his way to 359 passing yards. The game was played over two days due to Friday night thunderstorms. The win would catch the attention of the area as the offense (engineered by offensive coordinator Don Anderson, RIP) was making a name for itself. The win over Glenville was the biggest exclamation to their 9-1 regular season. It was also the first step in showcasing that this offense would become the most efficient and aggressive passing attack in Ohio of the last 20 years.

Mentor 78 Chardon 7 (2003): Mentor has had a lot of great teams since Trivisonno took over. Due to the success of four state runner-ups, it would be disrespectful to say that 2003 (Region 1 runner-up) was the best. But it is tough to deny that the 2003 group was the most dominant in program history. To put it in perspective, here are the most amount of points given up in one game by some of the state finalist teams: 2007 gave up 52 to Massillon, 2013 gave up 55 to Moeller, and 2017 gave up 59 to Euclid. In 13 games (including playoffs), the 2003 defense gave up 65 total points. Plain and simple, this was by far the best defensive team to ever put on a Mentor Cardinal uniform. The absolute dominance of Chardon was the most memorable win of the regular season. The Hilltoppers came into the game state-ranked and would later go on to win Region 5 on their way to a DII state semifinal. That Chardon team was no slouch, but they were no match for the most dominant team in program history. Mentor used four different QB's, so they were hardly trying to run up the score. It was a win that summed up the way the majority of games went during that special season.

Mentor 19 Massillon 7 (2006): Before the 2000's, the greatest win in program history was a 19-0 upset of the mighty Massillon Tigers back in 1968. When you think of Ohio football, Massillon should quickly come to mind. Beginning in 2005, Mentor began upgrading their non-conference schedule. One of those teams they ended up playing for six straight years was Massillon. In 2006, these two met for the first time at Jerome T Osborne Stadium. The game was broadcasted on Fox Sports Ohio and it was an important game for both teams, as they entered with identical 3-1 records. The year before, Massillon was a state runner-up. The 2006 Mentor team, led by QB Bart Tanski, would later that season reach the state final. The game was scoreless at halftime. Massillon RB/WR Brian Gamble, a two-time All-Ohio player, got Massillon on the board first in the 3rd quarter. In front of a packed house, Mentor's defense stuffed the Tigers most of the evening. The offense scored just enough. Mentor picked up a signature win over the winningest program in Ohio football history.

Mentor 38 St Ignatius 17 (2007): As stated above, Mentor started to beef up their schedule in 2005. The first big name that was announced was the mighty St Ignatius Wildcats. The first game had great anticipation, but Chuck Kyle's squad had defeated Mentor rather easily in 2005. Then the Cats followed that with a surprising upset the following season. This 2007 victory over St Ignatius was sweet for a lot of reasons, but one is that it was the first regular season victory against the most successful big school program of the last 30 years. Mentor came into this one as the defending Region 1 champions and state runners-up. St Ignatius was undefeated and the No. 2 ranked team in the AP poll. Mentor was searching for an important statement victory. Boy did they get one with a three touchdown beat down of one of the state's best. The game was tied 10-10 at halftime before QB Bart Tanski (2007 Mr Football) began engineering several big  drives in the second half to secure the win in front of one of the biggest crowds ever at Mentor.

Mentor 48 South 47 (2010): This rare Lake County clash was one of the more entertaining regular season games in the Triv-era. The Cardinals were 1-3 entering the Week 5 showdown with the undefeated and high-scoring Rebels. QB Mitch Trubisky was just a sophomore, so the team was much more reliant on running (behind senior RB Mike Korecz) than passing. The Rebels were the passing team that season, led by All-Ohio QB Ray Russ. South averaged 50 points a game during the regular season as Russ would throw for 391 yards and 5 TD's in this game. Mentor's running attack churned out 333 yards to help fuel a second half comeback. A couple Kurt Laseak interceptions were difference-makers. This loss was the only blemish on one of the best regular seasons in South football history. It gave Mentor a big computer point jolt and they ran the table to make the playoffs before falling to eventual state champion, St Edward, in a competitive Week 11 game. This game, and the the winning streak that followed, helped set up the best era (2011-2013) of Mentor football.

I will release the rest of my top ten, featuring games from 2011-2018, at a later time. 

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