Who: Elyria Pioneers
What: Greater Cleveland Conference game
Where: Jerome T. Osborne Stadium
When: October 30th at 7:00pm
Opposing Coach: Devlin Culliver (2nd season at Elyria, )
History: Mentor and Elyria were in the LEL together in the late 90's and early 2000's. After a 13 year absence of playing, the two met up as GCC members in 2015. Elyria beat Mentor at home (27-24) that season. The Cards won the past four games against the Pioneers, averaging almost 60 points per game.
Looking Back...
Nearly five years removed from one of the biggest wins in program history, Elyria has been on a down spiral ever since. After making the playoffs in three consecutive seasons from 2013-2015, Elyria has fallen on hard times. The Pioneers are just 5-36 since that Week 10 win over Mentor in 2015. Last season's game at the beautiful new Ely Stadium was over by the end of the 1st quarter. Mentor jumped out a 35-0 lead after 12 minutes before eventually winning 73-0. It was legendary coach Steve Trivisonno's 200th career win. Elyria ended a 15-game losing streak with last season's win was against Bedford, but it was their only win of the season. They surrendered 55+ points in five consecutive games during the middle of a eight-game losing streak. The last thing Elyria wants to do is look back at 2019.
Schedule...
The Pioneers begin the season with Midview (5-5 in 2019), Bedford (5-5), and Lorain (6-4). This is the identical non-conference schedule they had last season. Last season Elyria beat Bedford, 7-6. With Shaker leaving the GCC for the LEL, Elyria filled that open date with Avon Lake. The Shoremen were one of the better teams in DII last season, making it to the regional final. The GCC is as good of a league as there is in Division I, so expect Elyria to have their hands full once again. Last season's closest GCC game was a 20 point loss to the now-departed Shaker Heights. The Pioneers have finished at the bottom of the league the past four seasons. The most likely opportunity for a win will be in the first two games of the season.
2020 Elyria Outlook...
Elyria averaged just 9 points per game in the first half of the schedule before averaging 26.2 points over the final five. This included a 50-point explosion in a Week 7 loss to Shaker. Did the offense find something late season that could translate to 2020? The good news is that a lot of experienced players on offense do return. QB Daylan Sharlow, now a senior, began getting some starts as a sophomore in 2018. Receivers Jesse Stevens and Andrew Palos return. Jaheim Atkinson is a talented back that had several 100+ yard rushing games a season ago. Like Sharlow and Stephens, he will be entering his third season as a starter. Up front, four offensive lineman return after starting in 2019. Simon France (6'3, 265) is a big left tackle that is getting some college looks. Offensively, Elyria should see a lot of improvement. Atkinson is the player to watch out for, but overall this should be a group capable of scoring a lot more than they did last season.
Defensively, the team has a lot of room for improvement after giving up an average of 45.3 ppg in 2019. Their top defensive player (1st team All-District LB Ben Doehr) has graduated. This team might be able to score, but they will need to improve a lot on defense if they are to be competitive with this schedule. Culliver is only in his second year as coach of Elyria after a few stints at area schools like Shaw, Harvey, and Maple Heights. This will be the last year that Elyria is in the GCC as they are moving to the Southwestern Conference in the fall of 2021.
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