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Raiders' receiver thrilled about North-South game
Thursday, June 15, 2006
JEFF HUNT
ThisWeek Staff Writer When the rosters for the 61st-annual Grange Insurance Ohio North-South All-Star Classic were released early last month, receiver Armand Robinson of Reynoldsburg High School couldn't help but have a smile on his face.
Yes, he was excited about getting the opportunity to play in the longest-running all-star football game in the country, but he was even more energized about the fact that Nate Davis of Bellaire was selected as one of the two quarterbacks.
Davis, a 6-foot-3, 215-pound Ball State recruit, led the Big Reds to a Division III state semifinal and 13-1 record, throwing for 2,932 yards and 42 touchdowns. In his tenure at Bellaire, Davis threw for 7,348 yards and 81 touchdowns, both program records.
Robinson (6-0, 197), who had 82 catches for 1,375 yards and 15 touchdowns in his two seasons at Reynoldsburg, said he has bonded with Davis.
"We've already made a connection with play calls and signals," said Robinson, who had 40 receptions for 531 yards and six touchdowns last season as the Raiders finished 6-4 overall and 3-2 (third) in the OCC-Buckeye Division. "He understands me and I understand him. He has a good arm."
Davis emerged as a pocket passer as a senior in the Big Reds shotgun spread attack because his mobility was limited after having to wear a bulky knee brace after tearing an MCL in the opener.
Robinson took a liking to Davis' non-scrambling ways.
"He's a pocket quarterback whereas (Reynoldsburg quarterback Lance Lasker) was more of a scrambler if something's not open," Robinson said. "(Davis) is more of a pocket guy and he'll wait for me to get open."
"I stay in the pocket," Davis said. "I'll get the ball to our guys, who are really good and are really fast. They can put moves on guys and they catch the ball really well. We haven't had dropped balls at practice or anything. I just want to see what (the North) defensive backs are like."
Huber Heights Wayne's Alex Earley (6-1, 195), a Youngstown State recruit, is the South's other quarterback. He completed 200 of 323 passes for 2,558 yards and 26 touchdowns last season and was named the Division I Offensive Player of the Year.
Besides Robinson, the South's receiving corps consists of Josh Chichester (6-6, 215) of West Chester Lakota West and Eric Arnett (6-5, 210) of Watkins Memorial.
"Chichester is good," Robinson said. "He's tall and can go up and get it. Arnett is talented, too.
"I'm the shortest guy out here," Robinson said. "I'm more of a get out there and get open kind of guy. Just run my route correctly and Nate will get it to me."
Chichester, a Louisville recruit, is ranked as the 36th-best receiver by Rivals.com and the 14th-best receiver in the country by Scout.com. He had 36 receptions for 723 yards and seven touchdowns last season.
"What you have to be careful of is doing too much," said Bellaire coach John Magistro, who heads the South team. "One thing we do want to do is take advantage of (Davis') arm and the receivers. We want to get guys down the field to hook up with (Davis)."
Defensively, the South will have middle-linebacker Angelo Magnone (6-3, 218), who help lead Steubenville to the Division III state championship. He was named the Division III Defensive Player of the Year after recording 110 tackles and seven sacks.
LOCALLY -- There will be eight central Ohio athletes participating, all on the South team. They are Robinson, Arnett, Clark Crum (OT, 6-7, 280) of Dublin Scioto, Aaron Huffman (DB, 6-4, 210) of Newark, Don Matheney (DL, 6-2, 295) of Lancaster, Kris Luchsinger (DL, 6-4, 230) of Watterson, Trent Nwaru (DB, 5-11, 182) of Beechcroft and Bryant Potter (LB, 6-0, 190) of Centerburg.
"It's an honor," Crum said. "You have to appreciate being lucky enough to play in this game."
With the South expected to pass a lot, Crum, a Virginia Tech-signee, is expected to be able to work on his pass-blocking skills.
"It's a lot of running side to side and back to back," he said. "It's a good test for me."
Crum, who is rated the No. 40 offensive tackle in the country by rivals.com, was the district Offensive Player of the Year in Division II last season, leading Scioto to an 8-4 record after losing to Louisville 28-23 in a regional semifinal.
Luchsinger, an Ohio University recruit and Dublin resident, had 104 tackles last season, including 12 sacks and 15 tackles for loss. He was the Division II district Defensive Player of the Year.
"We have a great team here," Luschsinger said. "We're playing in Crew Stadium, an awesome venue, and against a great North team."
FACTS -- Of the 68 players, 12 are planning to attend Big Ten schools, including four to Ohio State, three to Indiana, two each to Michigan and Wisconsin and one to Iowa. Coaches and players arrived in Columbus last Sunday and practices will be at Otterbein College.
Each team will make a variety of appearances before the game, including a visit to Columbus Children's Hospital, Columbus City Council and a Columbus Clippers game. The scholarship banquet will be at 7 p.m. Friday at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.
FUTURE BUCKEYES -- Heading to Ohio State and playing for the North is Robert Rose (DL, Cleveland Glenville). Rose had 77 tackles, including 45 solo, with 17 sacks as a senior. Those playing for the South include Jake Ballard (TE, Springboro), Tyler Moeller (LB, Cincinnati Colerain) and Connor Smith (OL, Colerain).
Ballard caught 22 passes for 363 yards and three touchdowns in just eight games at Springboro. He was also named the Division II Defensive Player of the Year after totaling 35 solo tackles and three sacks.
Moeller was the Division I Defensive Player of the Year after totaling 123 tackles, 15.5 sacks and 29 tackles for loss. He helped lead Colerain to the state title (15-0) as a junior, as did Smith, who was the Greater Miami Conference Offensive Player of the Year as a lineman where he had 130 knockdowns as a senior.
THE NORTH TEAM -- Canal Fulton Northwest coach Vic Whiting will head the North team. With Copley's DeLone Carter, the state's regular-season rushing leader (2,440 yards) and Mr. Football, electing to play in the Big 33 Football Classic on Saturday in Hershey, Pa., the North will attempt to fill the void by going to Amherst Steel's Alex Knipp (6-0, 190).
Knipp finished third in the state in all divisions with 2,008 yards (8.7 per carry) and was the first Lorain County running back to rush for more than 2,000 yards in consecutive seasons. Knipp, who also scored 30 touchdowns as a senior and 53 in his career, is a Ball State recruit.
In the backfield, Knipp will be joined by Miami recruit Jamel Miller (5-11, 195) of Tallmadge and Northwest's Scott Weber (6-1, 225). Miller rushed for 2,278 yards and scored 24 touchdowns as a junior and 2,128 yards and 27 touchdowns as a senior in leading the Blue Devils to a combined 25-3 record and consecutive Division II regional championships.
Weber, who will play at Ashland, was the Division II Offensive Player of the Year, rushing for 1,673 yards on 263 carries with 32 touchdowns as a senior after totaling 2,007 yards on 277 carries with 30 touchdowns as a junior. He ran for 4,891 yards in his career with 72 touchdowns in leading Northwest to the playoffs in all four years.
The North's starting quarterback will likely be Iowa recruit Ricky Stanzi (6-4, 200) of Mentor Lake Catholic. He was the Division III Offensive Player of the Year.
Stanzi's top receiving target may be Illinois recruit Joe Morgan (6-2, 175) of Canton McKinley. Morgan caught 39 passes for 1,018 yards last season, setting school records for yardage and touchdowns in a season. Nine of his 13 touchdown catches were of 45 yards or more.
Defensively, Rose and Jefferson Area's Anthony Mirando (LB, 6-2, 232), a Kent State recruit and the Ashtabula County Defensive Player of the Year last season, should man the middle. He finished his senior season with 133 total tackles (5.5 sacks) and 127 as a junior.
HISTORY -- The Classic is the longest running state all-star game in the nation and is operating under its third title, formerly being known as the North-South All-Star Game and the Dial All-Star Game. It is being held in Columbus for the sixth consecutive year and eighth time overall. The 2001 contest was the first in Columbus since 1976, when it was played in Ohio Stadium. From 1977-2000, it was held in northeast Ohio, including 20 times in Massillon's Paul Brown Tiger Stadium. It has been held in eight cities and nine sites.
The North won the first meeting 26-21 on Aug. 17, 1946 at Toledo Waite under Notre Dame coach Frank Leahy. The next season, South coach Wes Fesler of Ohio State and North coach Ray Eliot of Illinois led their teams to a 6-all tie in Canton. Since those first two contests, the Ohio High School Football Coaches Association has selected coaches for the Classic.
Kerry Hodakievic (1998) was the most recent Columbus-area coach to earn a victory in the Classic when he was coach at Upper Arlington as the South won 10-9. There have been only two other area coaches to have won the Classic: Hugh Hindman (Columbus North, 1957) and Dick Walker (Watterson, 1966).
The Classic has showcased some of the nation's premier players, including four who have won Heisman trophies: Vic Janowicz, Roger Staubach, Archie Griffin (twice) and Desmond Howard.
At least one Classic participant has played in 38 of the 40 Super Bowls, most recently Findlay's Ben Roethlisberger (2000) of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
LAST YEAR -- North tailback Tyrell Sutton of Akron Hoban ran for 203 yards and three touchdowns on 21 carries en route to being game MVP as the North totaled a Classic single-game record for points in beating the South -- coached by Scioto's Karl Johnson -- 45-17. Sutton went on to be named the Big Ten Freshman of the Year after rushing for 1,474 yards at Northwestern last season.
