Mentor Moments: Quarterback Surprises

Over the weekend we saw freshman quarterback Scotty Fox put together a night to remember with 375 passing yards and five touchdowns. He is the backup to injured starter Jacob Snow. In true "Snow-like" fashion (who was a sophomore super sub in the state semifinal last year), Fox is raising some eyebrows with his play the last two weeks. Fox, starting just his second game, showed a lot for a 14 year-old thrust into a tough spot. Needless to say, the future looks bright for Mentor between Snow and Fox. Here is a list of some of the other "out of nowhere" performances from a young QB at Mentor.  

Mitch Trubisky (Week 1 regular season vs St Edward, 2010)

It is well known that Mentor legend Mitch Trubisky went on to become a success in high school (Mr. Football in 2012), in college (record setting QB at UNC), and in the NFL (#2 overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft). His high school career took off in the 2011 and 2012 seasons, but his first shot took place as a sophomore starting Week 1 at Cleveland Browns Stadium in 2010. The opponent would be none other than St Edward, a team that would eventually go on to finish as a 15-0 state champions. At the time, Trubisky was splitting QB duties with Colton Wallace. With Mentor down 21 points early in the first half, Trubisky's emergence from backup to on the field helped Mentor mount a comeback. In the second half, Trubisky connected with Wallace on a touchdown pass and engineered another touchdown drive that brought Mentor with a chance to tie in the final minute of the game. On second and goal from the five-yard line, St Edward forced a fumble and sealed a 35-28 win. The seven-point loss was the closest any team got to beating the Eagles all season. Considering the success we saw Trubisky achieve over the next ten years, it is no surprise that his first varsity moment was a memorable one. 

Click HERE for the Cleveland.com article on the game

Matt Eiswerth (Week 1 regular season vs Erie McDowell, 2013)

The shoes to fill for replacing Trubisky in the 2013 season couldn't be bigger. While eventual starter Conner Krizancic was dealing with some challenges in adjusting to a position change, sophomore Matt Eiswerth ended up taking the majority of the snaps in August. That would include getting a lot of action in Week 1 against Erie McDowell. Mentor found themselves down 16-0 in the 1st quarter. Eiswerth had a memorable debut as he threw for a record-tying five touchdown passes - two of which were to Krizancic when he was playing wide receiver. Two other touchdown passes were to Mentor legend Brandon Fritts. All in all, Eiswerth was the engineer behind Mentor's 44-30 win over McDowell. As good as Eiswerth's debut was, Krizancic was the ultimate answer at the QB position that season. Mentor would finish 9-1 in the regular season and advanced to a state title game with Krizancic (Ohio's Offensive POY in DI in 2013) leading the way. Eiswerth ended up being more mystery than legend as we never saw his career develop on the football field. He hung up his football gear and concentrated on baseball following this 2013 football season. But it would have been interesting to see how Eiswerth could've developed as QB in Mentor's system in the 2014 and 2015 seasons. 

Click HERE for the News-Herald article on the game

Tadas Tatarunas (Week 2 regular season vs St Ignatius, 2015)

Tatarunas won the battle for starting QB as a sophomore entering the 2015 season. After a solid debut in Week 1, Tatarunas caught the attention of the entire state with a stunning Week 2 performance against St Ignatius. Mentor and St Ignatius entered the game as the #1 and #2 teams on Cleveland.com/Plain Dealer. If you like offense, you got your money's worth and then some as the two teams combined for 17 touchdowns and over 1,400 total yards of offense. Tatarunas was the winning QB thanks to his unforgettable production: 25-35 passing for 523 yards and 4 TD's. His favorite target on the evening was record-setting receiver Jason Blizzard, who was highlighted in an earlier entry for top wide receiver performances. With the game tied at 56 late in the 4th quarter, Tatarunas scrambled and hit Malik Porter in the end zone with 8 seconds to play to win the unforgettable game. Tatarunas had a super sophomore season that saw him earn All-Ohio status. He finished his career as one of the all-time great players in program history, which included guiding the 2017 team to the state final. But anyone that followed Tatarunas for those three years will peg that record-breaking performance early in his sophomore season against St Ignatius as his most memorable game. 

Click HERE for the Cleveland.com article on the game

Ian Kipp (Week 1 against St Edward, 2018)

Like his predecessor, Kipp earned the opportunity to start from the beginning of his sophomore season like Tatarunas. Right off the bat, Kipp was faced with a challenging task as Mentor began the season with games against St Edward and St Ignatius. In Week 1 against the Eagles (the eventual state champs of that season), Kipp shocked the area with a big time performance and victory. Kipp developed into quite a passer during his time at Mentor, but early in his career he was more known for his ability to run. Behind a talented and experienced offensive line featuring Ryan Jacoby (Ohio State commit) and Nick Samac (Michigan State commit), Kipp ran the ball 19 times for 175 yards and two TD's. He finished the game incredibly efficient with his arm as well, throwing for 114 yards and 14-18 passing. Over his career, Kipp would throw for over 2,000 yards in both his junior and senior seasons. As a junior, Kipp earned Ohio's Offensive Player of the Year award in Division I. In a shortened senior season, Kipp threw for 2,048 yards and 26 TD's. Kipp earned a scholarship at Kent State, won nine playoff games, and finished with a 5-2 record against St Ignatius/St Edward. Those accolades leave Kipp as one of the best players to ever put on a Mentor uniform, but it all started with a stunning debut performance and win against a championship St Edward squad. 

Click HERE for the Cleveland.com article on the game

Jacob Snow (State Semifinal against Pickerington Central, 2020)

Out of all the debuts listed, the experience that Jacob Snow had was quite different. In 2020, he was a sophomore who spent the season being the starting QB on the JV team. During the week of the state semifinal game, there was concern with some of the players (including star QB Ian Kipp) regarding COVID contact tracing. Just a day or two before the game, Snow was given notice that he would be starting in the state semifinal against a very talented Pickerington Central team. These Tigers are the same program that knocked off Mentor in big games in the 2017 state championship and the 2019 state semifinal. Their roster was littered with college talent and plenty of experience from a state championship the season before. From the start of the game, Mentor appeared to be overmatched. Pickerington Central ran for a 92-yard touchdown on the first play of the second quarter to give them a 21-0 lead. Without Mentor's All-Ohio QB, the game looked like it would be a blowout. Jacob Snow had other ideas in mind. He would eventually settle in and help engineer a comeback. Snow threw two second half touchdowns that helped bring Mentor to within one score on both occasions. Mentor would ultimately lose the game (38-31), but Snow earned major respect and attention for his play. Snow finished the game with 193 passing yards, 45 rushing yards, and two touchdowns. While Snow is currently injured, his story is still not done being written. 

Click HERE for the Cleveland.com article on the game

Mentor Moments: Running Back

Over the weekend we saw senior running back Brenden Panhorst run for a career-high 175 yards in Mentor's 20-16 loss to North Alleghney (PA). After looking at some of the top wide receiver performances earlier this month, here is my look at some of the most memorable running back performances of the past twenty seasons. In chronological order, here are my top five most memorable single game performances for a Mentor running back. 

Bill Deitmen (Region 1 Final vs Warren Harding, 2006)

There was a time when Mentor winning a regional title was an unusual event. Heading into the 2006 game against Warren Harding, Mentor was 0-5 at the regional final stage of the OHSAA playoffs in their history. That included a couple of close, painful losses in the memorable runs of the 2002 and 2003 seasons. Bill Deitmen (RIP) was a three-year starter and one of the top backs ever to put on a Cardinals uniform. He was a key part of the program's transition to a regular powerhouse in Division I. The win over WGH in the 2006 Region 1 Final was helped made possible by Deitmen outdueling an opposing running back who would eventually be a starter at Ohio State and in the NFL. Daniel "Boom" Herron finished the game with 117 yards for Harding while Deitmen had 128 yards and two critical touchdowns in Mentor's historic 34-24 win over the Raiders at Massillon's Paul Brown Tiger Stadium. Mentor would go on to win Region 1 titles six more times, but this was the first that got "the monkey off their back." Deitmen follow up this regional final performance with the go-ahead score a week later in the same stadium in a state semifinal win against Canton McKinley. Deitmen played in the same backfield with future Mr. Football Bart Tanski. The two helped Mentor reach the state championship game in 2006 and set the program on a trajectory of excellence.

Click HERE for the News-Herald article on the game

Mike Korecz (Week 5 regular season vs Willoughby South, 2010)

Over the past 20+ years, Mentor has been known for their no-huddle spread passing offense that was ahead of its time at the high school level beginning in the early 2000's. Standouts at quarterback littered the roster since 2000. But some forget a little stretch from 2008-2010 where the running game was the most important part of the offense. A big reason for that brief transition was the talent of Mike Korecz. Mentor began using a two-back set in 2008 and stuck with that through Korecz' senior season. Korecz was a three-year starter that bridged the gap between Mr. Football QB's Bart Tanski and Mitch Trubisky. Playing alongside a couple other talented backs during his time (Tom Worden and Ricky Hanzlik), Korecz helped the running game hit incredible heights. Korecz was a 1,000-yard rusher for three straight seasons, a feat that to my knowledge has never been accomplished at Mentor. The biggest game of his high school career came in a pivotal Week 5 regular season game against previously unbeaten South. The Cardinals were off to a 1-3 start against a grueling schedule and in desperate need of a win to keep their playoff hopes alive. Korecz finished with 263 rushing yards in helping Mentor to a 48-47 win against a talented South team led by the Rebels legendary QB Ray Russ. 

Click HERE for the Cleveland.com article on the game

Alex Mathews (Week 2 against St Ignatius, 2014)

Quite possibly the most talented and gifted runner at Mentor over the past 20 years, Mathews was an integral part of the offense during his time. He was a sophomore starter on one of the most talented offenses Mentor has ever had in 2013 that featured a trio of DI college talent - Conner Krizancic (Minnesota), Brandon Fritts (North Carolina), and Eddie Daugherty (Eastern Michigan). As a junior, Mathews still had to bide his time and as he split carries with Daugherty. Mathews still ran for over 800 yards and 18 TD's. During his senior season, he earned the News-Herald's Player of the Year award while also becoming a Second Team All-Ohio player. That season included a career night in which he ran for 252 yards and five TD's against Medina in 2015. However, his most important single game performance came during a 37-33 regular season win against St Ignatius in 2014. Mathews finished the game with 138 yards and two TD's on just 18 carries. Considering the opponent and the magnitude of the series with the Wildcats, that was as big of a performance as Mathews had in his high school career. After leaving Mentor, Mathews would go on to play college football at Colgate. Mathews was the starting back for seven playoff wins in his career, which was more than any other player at his position in program history. 

Click HERE for the News-Herald article on the game

Eli McDougal (Region 1 Final against St Ignatius, 2017)

I'm not sure I saw a player come out of nowhere quite like Eli McDougal did during the 2017 season. He took a few years off from the game, but then made an enormous impression on the state finalist team. McDougal began the season getting limited action as he worked his way back into football. By the middle of the regular season, the team really blossomed into a contender as they gave McDougal more and more carries. The team went from missing the playoffs in 2016 to going on a memorable postseason run to a state championship game during McDougal's return to the sport. Mentor entered the regional final with a big one against St Ignatius. The Wildcats handed Mentor their only loss (41-31 in Week 2) up to that point. McDougal was unavailable in that regular season game and he was determined to make a difference in the rematch. His biggest game of the season came in his final healthy one of the 2017 campaign. In a regional final at Bedford, McDougal rushed for 151 yards and two TD's in a 23-21 win for the Cardinals. Late in the game, McDougal suffered an injury that would keep him completely out of the state semifinal and leave him less than 100% in Mentor's state final loss to Pickerington Central. McDougal was the difference-maker on one of Mentor's most impressive runs. 

Click HERE for the Cleveland.com article on the game

Brian Trobel (Week 1 vs St Edward, 2018)

One of the best players ever at Mentor, Trobel broke onto the scene with an explosive Week 1 win over St Edward in his first varsity start in 2018. From that point until his final game in a state semifinal in 2019, Trobel was often the best player on the field. He had a combination of strength, speed, and vision that was second to none. It is tough to imagine that his most impressive game may have been that first one against the Eagles. Behind an incredible offensive line featuring Ryan Jacoby (Ohio State commit) and Nick Samac (Michigan State commit), Trobel ran wild for 191 yards and 24 touchdowns against a very talented St Edward team that would go onto win the state championship later that season. QB Ian Kipp also had a big night of running the football that evening as Mentor defeated the Eagles 42-39 in an exciting regular season opener. Trobel would be a two-time All-Ohio back and an important part of Mentor's 2018 and 2019 teams that are considered to be two of the best in program history. When on the field (Mentor did lose a 2018 regular season game to Solon when Trobel was injured), Trobel only lost two games. Both of those were in close playoff games to the eventual state champions (St Edward in 2018 and Pickerington Central in 2019). 

Click HERE for the Cleveland.com article on the game

Honor Roll: 

Matt Lieb (class of 2004): Lieb was part of "The Class" that brought the football program from obscurity to statewide attention. Lieb was a central part of that success. His All-Ohio season in 2003 was overlooked due to the success of the (at the time) revolutionary no-huddle spread offense led by QB Thom Abbot and the enormity of the success and talent on defense. Make no mistake, the 2003 team wouldn't have been as dominant without Lieb balancing out the offense. Lieb was a First Team All-Ohio player with over 1,500 rushing yards in 2003. As for his most memorable game, look to his last. In Mentor's heartbreaking overtime loss to St Edward in the regional final, Lieb finished with 145 rushing yards. 

Tom Worden (class of 2009): Worden became a difference-making back on the 2007 state semifinalist team. Replacing three-year starter Bill Deitmen, Worden gained 1,447 yards and 18 touchdowns during his junior season. His biggest game came in the 2007 Region 1 final win over Glenville as Worden rushed for 154 yards in helping Mentor to a 41-40 victory. As a senior, Worden shared the backfield with talented sophomores Mike Korecz and Ricky Hanzlik. Whether Worden was getting carries or running routes, he proved to be an effective part of the offense. As a senior, he scored 14 touchdowns on his way to earning Second Team All-Ohio honors.