Opponent Preview: Euclid (Week 9)

Week 9

Who: Euclid Panthers

What: Greater Cleveland Conference game

Where: Jerome T Osborne Stadium

When: October 20th at 7:00pm

Opposing Coach: Jeff Rotsky (5th season at Euclid, 34-14 record)

History: Mentor and Euclid have been on each other's schedule for many years in conference and out of conference. The Cardinals have a 25-17 record in the overall series. Dealing with injuries to key offensive players, Mentor had a huge 29-7 road win at Euclid.

Looking Back...
The Panthers finished 8-2 in the regular season, including 6-1 in a competitive conference. Their biggest wins were against Solon, Glenville, and Lorain. Euclid's three losses (including playoffs) were to the big boys of Region 1: St Ignatius, Mentor, and St Edward. After shutting out Fitch 35-0 in Week 11, Euclid lost to St Edward in the regional semifinal. Rotsky has pushed the program forward, but the continued thorn in their side would be St Ignatius/St Edward. The Panthers are 0-6 against those two since 2015. Euclid has a storied past, but last year might've been their most talented team ever. Eight offensive/defensive starters made either 1st or 2nd team All-District in 2018. All were seniors. 

Schedule...
Euclid has a schedule filled with few holes as only two opponents had a losing record in 2018. The non-conference portion features Glenville (8-2 in 2018) and Canton McKinley (9-3). Both of those teams won their league last season and are two of the most consistently strong programs in NEO. The third non-conference games is against Buffalo Canisius (NY), a program that was 5-5 last year. Over the past four seasons, Euclid has beaten either Mentor or Solon every year. Winning at least one of those games puts the Panthers in great playoff positioning as well as giving themselves a chance to win at least a share of the league title. Euclid is 19-1 against the rest of the league (Strongsville, Medina, Elyria, Shaker, and Brunswick) since the current form of the GCC formed in 2015. The lone loss was in 2016 to a Medina playoff team. 

2019 Euclid Outlook...
QB Dion Valentine (1590 yards 22 TD's in the regular season) returns to lead the Panther offense. Valentine brings some big game experience with a playoff win under his belt as well as a hard fought effort against eventual state champions, St Eds, in Week 12. Last year's top two playmakers (RB Brandon Wright and WR Dre'von Lindsay) have graduated, but the cupboard is hardly bare. RB Jaabir Mujihad got plenty of action last year as he often split carries with Wright or had to take over due to injury. Mujihad rushed for over 600 yards last season in somewhat limited action. Atiba Fitz is an exciting player for Euclid that can make plays at multiple positions - running back, receiver, and in the return game. As a sophomore, Fitz had two scores against St Edward last year in the regional semifinal. John Brown is the lone returning offensive lineman, but that has been a position that has reloaded well since Rotsky took over. Kicker Mamadou Mbaye, 2nd team All-District in 2018, returns to give a boost to special teams.

Defensively, the Panthers graduated pretty much every starter and impactful player. They had a trio of seniors (Sean Jackson, Jaylen Jacobs, and Chris Parker) that were among the best group of linebackers in the state. Safety Job Rand was part of a talented group of defensive backs that graduated. The only place with experience on defense is up front, led by tackles Ty'Wann Johnson and two-way lineman John Brown. LB Andre Tillman got some experience last year and could be one of the leaders on a new defense. 

Before Rotsky came, Euclid hadn't won a playoff game since 1993. In his four years, he has guided the Panthers to playoffs every season and already has four playoff victories. His critics are plenty, but his results have been impressive. Euclid has done very well in the league and expect that to remain the same in 2019. Expect a 5th straight playoff appearance behind a reloaded roster that will compete with Mentor and Solon for the top of the league. 

Next Preview: Strongsville (Week 10)