by 2020 EDITION ( The only one NOT played on Black Friday )
The two schools managed to avoid each in 2019 as it was Massillon knocking off Hoban to collide with Avon in the Final Four. Sadly, for Avon, the result was the same as Massillon could not be stopped. But now, they got their chance to rematch Hoban once again with perhaps the greatest talent Avon has ever had. They had the momentum too, coming off a thrilling last second win over their rivals the Avon Lake Shoreman a week before.
Down big early, Avon stormed back in the second half at a frosty Byers Field in November 2020. A 64-yard Kharion Davis pick six ended the dramatic Avon rally, and gave the Knights of Hoban a 28-14 victory.
The Hoban Knights used an 80-yard, 7 minute drive over 13 plays to start the scoring on their opening drive of the game. This was after a 5 plus minute drive came up empty on the Nathan Vakos 42-yard field goal that sailed wide right.
The Knights touchdown came on a 11-yard Victor Dawson touchdown run. Dawson had a big night with 17 carries for 110 yards and 2 big touchdowns. It was the Knights cashing in again with a stellar two-minute drive that started on their own 36 with only a minute and change to go to end the first half.
They got the ball back after an Avon Eagle drive went 4 and out on 4 straight incomplete passes after a shanked punt gave the Eagles great field position. The Knights finished it off with a 19-yard passing strike from Shane Hamm to Brayden Fox with 11 seconds to go in the half.
Fox had a big game with 5 catches for 85 yards and 1 touchdown. Hamm went 13 of 21 for 191 yards and that touchdown. His other big targets were Kharion Davis, who had 3 catches for 35 yards, and Shawn Parnell, who had 3 catches for 32 yards.
Being down is nothing new to the Avon Eagles. They don’t blink in the face of adversity, and this evening was no different. After the opening second-half Hoban drive stalled because of penalties, the Eagles took over near midfield and began their comeback attempt. It was a rough night for Hoban, penalty-wise, as they chalked up 133 yards on 15 costly penalties.
The Eagles scored on an 8-yard pass from Niko Pappas to the suddenly red-hot Timmy Conwell. Pappas rebounded from a slow first half to have a strong second half. Pappas finished with 144 yards on 14 of 26 passing with 1 touchdown and 2 picks late. Conwell finished the season strong with a 7-catch, 66-yard night.
Pappas did his best work with his feet, as he had all season. Pappas used big runs of 29 and 23 yards on back-to-back drives in the second half to get the Eagle offense cooking. The second drive resulted in a touchdown for the Eagles to tie the game.
A 16-yard pass to Mike Ptacek put them on the 2-yard line for first and goal. They rushed to the line, then Pappas lunged forward, breaking the plane to tie the game at 14 with 9:34 to go.
The Archbishop Knights aren’t one of the top teams in the state year in and year out for no reason, and on this night they showed why. They calmly responded with one big play after another to retake the lead on a three-minute drive capped by a powerful 3-yard touchdown run by Dawson to reclaim the lead, 21–14, with 6:37 to go. The defense would seal the deal from there.
A little over 365 days later, it was insert tape and hit play—rematch number three was underway. Could this be the year the Eagles finally got past the Knights, in the 2021 state final four game? The Eagles came in red hot, having gone on a 9-game winning streak since losing to their rival, while Hoban had looked a bit shaky at times over the course of the season. If the Eagles were going to do it, this was their chance.
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