by This recap is brought to you by the only book in existence Chuck Kyle wrote the forward for.
Games like these are what playoff football is all about. What an incredible night on Cedar and Lee!
The Tigers of Cleveland Heights and the Wildcats of Saint Ignatius met at the OHSAA regional quarterfinal just 2 miles down the road from John Carroll University (Go Blue Streaks!). Tiger Stadium played host to an absolute offensive masterclass in the first quarter.
All 5 offensive drives in the opening frame resulted in touchdowns. Cleveland Heights just needed 2 plays to get going, as quarterback Darreon Fair took a QB keeper 52 yards to get the Tigers inside the Cats 30 yard line. Fair followed that up with a 1 yard touchdown run of his own to cap off the drive.
Ignatius only needed 1 play to get on the scoreboard, as receiver Cody Haddad took a squib kick right up the gut 70 yards for a kickoff return touchdown. Just like that, the score became even at 7.
The Tigers didn’t seem phased at all after giving up a special teams touchdown. Darreon Fair quickly pitched the ball to RB Marquis Davis, who did the rest on a 62 yard house call to break the tie 14-7.
Ignatius responded by driving down and getting into Tiger territory, thanks to a 17 yard scramble by Quarterback Josh Papesh. Papesh then threw a quick out pass on third down that the receiver fumbled but was quickly pounced on. This fumble ended up benefitting the cats, as they would not have gotten first down yardage had they completed the out pass. On the 12 yard line, running back Max Ritt bullied his way through for a tough touchdown despite his helmet flying off mid play. The score became tied, once again 14-14.
With over 3 minutes to go in the first quarter, the Tigers had an opportunity to get more points before the end of the frame. They seized that opportunity. After Marquis Davis made an incredible 1 handed catch on third down to keep the drive alive, RB John Gordon took a jet sweep and ran 46 yards to the endzone to help Heights retake the lead and make it 21-14 to end an incredible first quarter.
The start of the second quarter featured our first defensive stop of the night, as Tiger defender Ashawn Sims was able to fight through and sack Papesh. This resulted in a Wildcat punt. Darreon Fair once again reminded everyone that he should not be messed with on the ground, gliding his way through the defense on a 66 yard touchdown run. This doubled the Tiger lead to 28-14. After getting another defensive stop, the ball was placed back in the hands of Fair. he threw his first pass of the game early in the second quarter, which was incomplete and set up fourth down.
The Tigers had everything going for them in the first half, even when it looked bleak at times. Despite facing a fourth and long and an obvious punt position, Fair took a high snap and scampered his way through for a first down gain. After another conversion on fourth down set the Tigers up in the red zone, they capped the drive off with another 1 yard TD run by Fair, his fourth rushing touchdown of the half. This is a quarterback, mind you.
The Cats got the ball back once more towards the end of the half. Instead of going for a hail mary to the endzone, they instead ran a post play and it backfired badly. Tiger defender Henry Parrymond Jr sat on the route and picked off Papesh. He then used his quickness to leave all the Ignatius offensive players in the dust for a pick 6 as the clock hit double 0.
Darreon Fair accumulated 177 rushing yards on 12 carries in the first half alone.
The Cats opened the first half with a beautiful screen play that netted over 40 yards, but holding sent them back. After a few plays of stagnation and penalties, they were able to make up for that costly mistake. RB Sean Martin ran 47 yards to get to the Heights 15 yard line. Papesh took the next play himself on a QB scramble 15 yards for the touchdown. The Cats cut the deficit to 42-21.
After a quick three-and-out from the Tigers on their next possession, the Cats showed up once again on their next drive. Sean Martin ran 20 yards outside to get the ball past midfield. Josh Papesh then found receiver Ryan Kennedy across the middle for a 35 yard touchdown, getting the cats to within 2 scores.
Ignatius’ defense held strong once again as they forced another 4th and long situation for the Tigers. They tried yet another fake punt with fair, but this time he threw an incompletion. Offsetting penalties resulted in Wildcat Football just behind midfield.
Sean Martin found acres of space on a wheel route on 3rd down for an easy 46 yard touchdown, and just like that, Ignatius found themselves within a score at the start of the 4th quarter.
The fourth quarter also began with a scary moment for the Tigers, as Fair injured himself on a 13 yard run, but he was able to limp off the field under his own power. After their offense stalled on the drive without their starting quarterback, Ignatius got right back to work. The Cats stormed down the field thanks to a couple huge runs from Sean Martin. Marimee was then left unattended in the endzone and hauled in an easy 17 yard touchdown score. TIE GAME! 42-42.
Darreon Fair was able to come back into the game on the Tigers next drive, but all that did was allow him to fumble on a QB keeper that was recovered by Cats defender Max Palinski. This put Ignatius completely in the driver’s seat with under 10 minutes left in the game. However, the Tiger defense stepped up big time. Wildcat backup RB Max Ritt was stuffed on third and short and led to a punt. This gave the ball back to the Tigers with the score nodded at 42.
Fair threw his first and only completed pass of the day for the tigers, but it was a huge one. John Gordon went full extension with an incredible catch that was good for 33 yards and put the Tigers into enemy territory with under 4 minutes left. Facing a 4th and 1 on the 12 yard line, Fair was able to sneak it through for a first down, then followed that with a 5 yard run of his own to retake the lead 49-42 with just over a minute left to play.
Do you believe in miracles? Clearly Igantius does, as Max Ritt took the kickoff 80 yards to the house for a touchdown to give the Cats their first lead of the game…but wait a minute.
Instead of kicking the extra point and going for the tie, coach Chuck Kyle decided to gamble, and boy did it pay off. Papesh found Brandon Webster to complete the 2 point conversion and give the Wildcats an incredible 50-49 lead. The Tigers had one last gasp with 50 seconds left, but the Cats defense came up big and stopped them from getting a single first down. Ignatius completed the largest comeback in football program history, and capped off arguably the greatest game in OHSAA football history. Somehow, some way, the Ignatius Wildcats keep on dancing, and they now will face bitter rival St. Edward next week.
Player of the Game
I have 2 choices for this week’s player of the game. The first is to Ignatius RB Sean Martin, who had 2 big runs on their third quarter drive to shift the momentum into the Cats’ favor
The other choice is not a player, but rather the coach. Coming out of halftime, nearly everyone believed that this would be coach Chuck Kyle’s last game. But he made crucial adjustments and had the game winning 2 point call and he will live to see another game in his final season. Congrats Coach!
Huge congratulations, Wildcats!!!! 💙💛🏈
So exciting!! Both teams have very talented players.