2025 Booster Club Report – Week 8 – Post-Cardinal…

2025 Booster Club Report – Week 8 – Post-Cardinal Ritter; Preview of the Cornerstone Christian Game

Massillon (4-3) defeated Cardinal Ritter (2-3) from St. Louis, Missouri, 28-14.  This week Massillon hosts Cornerstone Christian (4-2) from San Antonio, Texas.

Link to the Football North Story

Link to the Football North Game Statistics

Other scores:

• 7th Grade (4-0): Defeated Massillon Perry, 21-6.  Plays at Canton on Tuesday, October 7, at 6:00 pm.
• 8th Grade (1-4): No score reported.  Plays at Canton on Wednesday, October 8, at 6:00 pm.
• Freshmen (1-5): Lost to Medina Highland, 32-24.  Plays at Akron Buchtel on Tuesday, October 7, at5:00 pm.
• Junior Varsity (0-6-1): Lost to Avon, 42-7.  Plays at Warren Harding on Saturday, October 11, at 11:00 am.

Review of the Cardinal Ritter Game

Massillon defeated a very good Cardinal Ritter team, 28-14.  The Tigers scored on the third play of their first possession when Savior Owens broke through the right side of the line and raced 45 yards to the end zone.  Owens then scored again from ten yards out to up the score to 14-0.  The points continued as Ritter had the their own long run of 70 yards for a score, followed by a 12-yard touchdown pass from Manny Patterson to Jadyce Thigpen.  Finally, the Lions connected on a Hail Mary pass of 46 yards as time expired, closing the margin to 21-14 at the half.  In the fourth quarter Christian Culler salted the game away with a 44-yard touchdown run.  It came on his first carry of the season.  Owens finished with 22 attempts for 168 yards and two TDs.  Isaac Maxheimer recorded nine total tackles and Ja’Dyn Williams had seven.  Chayce White was spectacular in intercepting a long sideline pass.

“It was a great win last week against a big, physical team,” said Massillon Head Coach Nate Moore.  “We had a lot of guys play really hard against a great opponent.  The Tigers outplayed them.  I’m really proud of them for responding (following last week’s loss to Football North).”

Moore also cited the play of the defensive, particularly linemen Marcus Garner and Joe Karder.  “There was lots of great execution and hustle by the defense.  Marcus makes a big difference in the middle of the defensive line.  Joe had his best game of the year.”

Coach also said it was sad how it ended when the two teams had difficulty shaking hands.  He was glad that the Massillon Police Department was there to restore order.

The guest players were senior quarterback Eli Moore and junior wide receiver/defensive back Deontay Malone.

Moore – We had to keep our heads on.  We did the little things right.

Malone – I’m  very excited to head into this week.  I can’t wait to get after it.  They (Cornerstone Christian) have a couple of good players.  But the wide receiver -to-defensive back matchups are in our favor.

Results to date:

• Dallas Christian (2-3): 43-22 W
• Fort Bend Christian Academy (2-4): 37-7 W
• Parish Episcopal (5-1): 38-43 L
• Midland Christian (3-2): 14-17 L
• LBJ Austin Early College (3-2): 37-21 W
• Stanton (1-5): 58-0 W

Moore said that Cornerstone is a good opponent, similar to teams the Tigers have played the past few weeks.  They have good size, but are not as physical up front as last week.  They also have good skill players, but not as fast as Cardinal Ritter.  Inspite of having good players across the board, Moore did not see any matchup problems.  Nevertheless, the team will need to play their best.

The top players on offense are:

• Sophomore quarterback Mateo Rodriguez (5′-10″, 180); 64 of 113 (57%) for 904 yards and 13 TDs; 44.7 punt ave; accurate passer; keeps eyes downfield.
• Senior wide receiver Davis McCray (6′-2″, 200); 16 receptions for 293 yards and 5 TDs; 3-star recruit; Kentucky commit.
• Junior wide receiver Luke Smith (6′-0″, 187); 25 receptions for 321 yards (12.8 ave.) and 4 TDs.
• Sophomore running back Jaylen McKane (5′-8″, 165); 85 attempts for 706 yards (8.3 ave.) and 11 TDs; good player with good speed.

The the largest player on the Warrior offensive line is junior Brandon Stewart (6′-5″, 365), although he is not the most mobile football player.  However, the rest of the line is still big, averaging 6′-1″, 280 lbs.  The have good height in their 4-man the receiver corps, with McCray and junior Jaaaden Johnson standing 6′-2″ and 6′-3″, respectively.  Cornerstone will operate mostly in 10-personnel, but will show some empty backfield.  The scheme is heavy pass.

The top defensive players are:

• Senior linebacker Angel Hernandez (6′-0″, 210); 49 total tackles, 15.0 TFLs, 2.0 sacks; best linebacker.
• Junior defensive lineman Ahzan Bacote (6′-3″, 270); best defensive lineman.

The Warriors utilize a 4-3-4 alignment, but will occasionally pull a linebacker and insert a fifth defensive back.  The front-7 is considered the strength of the unit, while all of the defensive backs are good players.

Massillon Notes

The Tigers continue to shuffle the starting lineup, even this far into the season.  On offense, 20 different players have been listed as starters for various games, including 11 seniors and 9 juniors.  Some for more than one position.  They are distributed as follows:

• Quarterback (3)
• Running back (2)
• Tight end (3)
• Fullback (1)
• Offensive line (7)
• Wide receiver (7)

On defense, there have been 19 different starters, including 9 seniors and 10 juniors.  Again, some for more than one position.  They are as follows:

• Defensive line (6)
• Inside linebacker (5)
• Outside linebacker (4)
• Cornerback (4)
• Safety (3)

Even this week there are two new starters listed: Marcus Garner Jr. at nose tackle and Ke’Aun Fowler at inside linebacker.

When comparing Week 1 to Week 8 there is just one different starter on offense, senior lineman James Wallace Jr., in spite of all the shuffling that has occurred.  However, the defense continues to be a work in progress, as there are now six different starters from Week 1 to now.  In addition, there are several players that never started, but have seen significant action early in the game.  It is certainly building depth and bodes well for the future, as it attests to the youth of this team.  And the strength.

Go Tigers!

Massillon Falls to Canada’s Football North in One-Sided Loss

Massillon Falls to Canada’s Football North in One-Sided Loss

Statistics

Coaches will tell you that in order to win in the game of football a team must run the ball and stop the run.  And that philosophy goes hand in hand with the need to control the line of scrimmage.  It also helps to win the turnover battle.  But on this pleasant fall evening Massillon was able to do none of the above and fell to the visitors from Mississauga, Ontario, 34-2.

Football North is an all-star team that rosters players from all over Canada, who hope to receive football scholarships from American universities.  They compete against opponents exclusively from within the United States.  As such, they are not your typical Canadian football team.  North is also a bit disadvantaged at the start of the season since, like Rabun Gap, they don’t get their players in camp until just a few weeks prior to the first game.  So, they peak later.  Unfortunately, it appears that the Tigers caught them at peak time, unlike previous opponents, and perhaps underestimated them a bit based on their earlier performances.  It would be surprising if they lost another contest this year.

The star of the game was North’s diminutive running back Josh Martin-Pendkey, who rushed 26 times for 192 yards (7.4 ave), including a long of 54, and scored four touchdowns.  He was fast, strong and elusive and he was everything you wanted in a running back.  On most plays he would take the handoff and head directly for the line.  Once bottled up, he would then quickly change direction to the outside, skirting the end for most of his yards, dragging would-be tacklers along the way.  The rest of the team produced just 54 yards, but Martin-Pendkey’s was enough.

The other star was the North defense, which kept the Tigers pinned back in their own territory for most of the game, while in essence pitching a shutout.  It didn’t help that Massillon gave the ball away seven times, four in conjunction with quarterback sacks, two when runners were stripped of the ball and one on a pass interception.  But credit for all the fumbles goes to the North defensive front, which played in the Tiger backfield for the entire game.  Incidentally, three of fumbles led to short-field touchdowns on second half drives of 2 yards, 3 yards and 36 yards.  Nevertheless, the fumbles didn’t affect the eventual outcome, just the final score.

Massillon picked up two points from a safety early in the game when a punt snap sailed over the head of the punter and out of the end zone.  But it became their only points.  The last time the Tigers failed to score a touchdown in a game was in 2007 in a 27-0 loss to Cleveland St. Ignatius.  The last time they failed to score an offense touchdown was in a 7-6 loss to Austintown Fitch in 2015.  That TD came on a punt return.

As well as North ran the ball, Massillon did finish with good statistics in the passing part of the game, limiting quarterback Jacob Muller to just 3 of 13 for 65 yards, with one interception.  As a result, North was able to convert just 4 of 12 third downs.  That at least kept the score under control until the turnovers became a factor.

The North defense caused problems for the Tigers all night.  They had big, powerful linemen to control the line of scrimmage and blitzed two linebackers on nearly every play, thereby closing down the running plays and putting maximum pressure on the quarterback.  With this scheme they also relied on a speedy secondary to limit the passing yards.  As a result, a frustrated Owens had little success running from either the running back position or from the shotgun and finished with 14 attempts for just 51 yards (3.6 ave.).  Meanwhile, quarterback Manny Patterson was under duress the entire night and was constantly chased out of the pocket.  Give him credit for trying to make something happen with his team behind on the scoreboard, but it was also costly in the long run, resulting in five sacks, four fumbles, 56 lost rushing yards and 1 of 8 on third down conversions.  Field position was also a problem, with Massillon’s twelve possessions beginning on average at their own 25 yard line.

North scored on the third play of its first possession on a 12-yard rush by Martin-Pendkey.  The TD was set up when Mujller connected with Andre Meltzer on a 38-yard pass and Martin-Pendkey followed up with a 10-yard run.  Massillon responded by moving the ball to midfield, but fumbled it away.  Then, after a mishandled snap from scrimmage moved North back 29 yards, the ensuing snap on fourth down sailed over the punter’s head to award Massillon the safety.

The Tigers did have a chance for points on their next possession when they moved to the North 28, but were stopped on downs.

In the second quarter North scored again, capping off a 52-yard drive with a quarterback keeper from the one.  The PAT failed.  The score stayed at 13-2 until late in the third quarter when the fumble scenario began.  First was a 1-yard TD run by Martin, then a 3-yard TD run by Martin, followed by a 1-yard TD run by Martin in the fourth as it seemed that the roof was falling in on the Tigers.  The total offense for the three TDs?  Just 41 yards.

Massillon’s final attempt at a score came on their last possession and ended when a 12-yard pass into the end zone was intercepted by Jorel Sahay.  Patterson finished the game completing 13 of 24 passes for 117 yards.  Isaac Maxheimer, who was moved to outside linebacker for this one, led the team with eleven total tackles, one quarterback sack and two tackles for loss.  Rasmus Hines punted four times and averaged a very fine 42.5 yards per attempt.  Deontay Malone caught three passes and returned a kickoff 61 yards.

Next week Massillon (3-3) is home to Cardinal Ritter (2-2) from Missouri.  Football North (2-3) travels to Mt. Zion Prep (0-5).  The following week they play Lakewood St. Edward.

Ja’Dyn Williams (9), Josh Henderson (19), Christian Culler (3), Eli Moore (8), Gio Jackson Jr. (21)

Eli Moore

Manny Patterson (10)

Deontay Malone (6)

Ja’Dyn Williams (9)

Deontay Malone (6)

Anthony McMullen Jr.

Gio Jackson Jr. (21)

Manny Patterson (10)

Savior Owens (1)

Jadyce Thigpen (44)

Lee Owens Book Signing Event Was a Rousing Success

Lee Owens Book Signing Event Was a Rousing Success

The Massillon Museum served as host for a packed house on Wednesday to hear three former Tiger coaches and a current one reflect back on their experiences as head coaches of the Massillon football program.  The group included Lee Owens, Rick Shepas, Tom Stacy and Nate Moore.  Following the forum each took part in signing a recently released book written by Owens titled, “The Spirit of a Team.”  The contents of the publication are described as “Successful CEOs and Coaches Share Their Strategies for Achieving Excellence,” with a forward written by Jim Tressel, Lt. Governor of Ohio and former Ohio State football head coach.

Emceeing the event was Scott Ryan and Becca Moore, with the support of the museum staff, including football curator Logan Carr and museum director Alexandra Nicholis Coon.

Lee Owens was the head coach of Massillon from 1988 through 1991.  He was hired at a time when the Tigers were struggling to consistently field a competitive team.  In fact, Massillon had lost four consecutive games to Canton McKinley and had a year left on a 3-year ban from post-season play.  Owens quickly righted the ship and went on to compile a win-loss record of 35 wins and 13 losses over his four seasons.  His teams also qualified for the playoffs three times and captured two regional championships.  In addition, he won three of four games against the Bulldogs, including a 42-13 beat down during the 1991 season.  Owens then left Massillon for a 3-year stint as an assistant coach for Ohio State, which was followed by six years as head coach at the University of Akron, where his 2000 team finished first in the MAC East.  He finished his career as a very successful mentor for Ashland University, retiring with a 137-61 record, four league championships and six NCAA Division II playoff qualifications over a 19-year span from 2004 to 2022.  Four times he was named Conference Coach of the Year.  While an active member of the American Football Coaches Association, he has also been inducted into both the Massillon Tiger Football Hall of Fame and the Ohio High School Coaches Hall of Fame.  Please welcome back Coach Lee Owens.

Rick Shepas was the head coach of Massillon from 1998 through 2004, where he compiled a record of 53 wins and 27 losses.  He was not shy in scheduling the top parochial schools from around the state and played them fairly evenly.  But his record against peer public schools was a fine 49 wins against just 13 losses, including 5-3 mark versus McKinley.  His 1999 team was undefeated during the regular season and his 2001 and 2002 teams captured playoff regional championships.  Following Massillon, Rick was the head coach for twelve years at Division III Waynesburg University, where he had a record of 69-55.   Four of his teams qualified for post-season play.  His next stop was athletic director for the Youngstown City Schools and he is currently the AD for Warren Harding.  Please welcome back Coach Rick Shepas.

Tom Stacy, who was an assistant coach under Lee Owens at both Massillon and the University of Akron, returned to Tigertown in 2005 as head coach.  He remained in that position for three years, compiling a record of 25 wins and 11 losses.  His best season was his first when his team advanced to the Division I playoff state finals.  The Tigers had a remarkable year, finishing the season with a 9-1 record, defeating Cleveland St. Ignatius for the first time ever, revenging a season-ending loss to Canton McKinley and beating Lakewood St. Edward in the state finals, before dropping a close one in the state finals to Cincinnati St. Xavier.  The 2005 team also set a Massillon record with 13 victories.  He then served three years as head coach at Green High School before re-uniting with Owens at Ashland as an assistant coach, where he remains today in his 16^th year.  Please welcome back Coach Tom Stacy.

Nate Moore is the current head coach of the Massillon Tigers.  This is his 11^th year as a Tiger where he has compiled an overall record of 113 wins and 27 losses, owning more wins there than any previous Massillon coach.  In fact, Moore has elevated the program from state-level to national-level prominence, while regularly scheduling and defeating teams from throughout the country.  Four times his teams finished the season ranked in the Top 100 nationally.  Through ten years he has experienced six playoff regional championships, along with a Division II state championship in 2023.  During that year the Tigers finished with a perfect 16-0 record, a regular season victory over Division I state champion Lakewood St. Edward and a state finals victory over nemesis Akron Hoban.  Following the season Moore was named Ohio Division II Coach of the Year, Maxpreps.com National Coach of the Year and head coach of the Ohio North-South All-Star Game.  Prior to his arrival at Massillon, Moore won a Division II state title at Cincinnati LaSalle High School.  Please welcome Coach Nate Moore.

2025 Booster Club Report – Week 6 – Post-Lakewood…

Football North plays in the East Coast Power Prep League, comprised of teams exclusively in the U.S.  Over the past five years they have a record of 17-24.  Last year they finished with a record of 8-3, including a 45-6 loss to Massillon.

Football North’s schedule to date:

• Bishop McDevitt, PA (3-1): 27-7 W
• Walsh Jesuit (5-0): 6-30 L
• Detroit Central Catholic, MI (4-0): 28-41 L
• The St. James Academy, VA (2-0): 42-76 L

“They are a pretty good football team,” said Moore.  “Best in  Canada. They play great competition; all American teams.”

It’s starts with their offensive line, which averages 6′-3″, 269 lbs.  Junior quarterback Jacob Muller (6′-1″, 205) is considered to be the best player.  He throws a good ball and wants to stretch the field.  He’s also a good runner.  There is some speed in the wide receiver corps.  They will use 11-personnel formations, with some open sets.

Defensively, they have good size on the line, averaging 6′-2″, 250 lbs.  Junior tackle Graham Harburn-Weldon (6′-2″, 240) is their best in that area.  He is very physical.  The inside linebackers also have good size, hovering in the 200-pound range and they like to blitz.  The defense aligns with an even front, with three linebackers and four defensive backs.  In the secondary, they will use multiple coverages, both man and zone.  Look for cover-0 cover-1, cover-2 and cover-3 formations.

Go Tigers!

Massillon Holds Off No.1 Lakewood St. Edward to Win…

Massillon Holds Off No.1 Lakewood St. Edward to Win 4^th Consecutive Game in the Series

Statistics

If you are in the business of predicting the scores of high school football games then it’s time to open your mouth and insert your foot.  Because you’ve proven once again that your algorithm is flawed without a true “strength of schedule” component in your equation.  For, Massillon entered the contest against Ohio’s No. 1 Lakewood St. Edward as much as a 34-point underdog owing to a couple of losses.  But those losses were in overtime to a very good Cleveland Glenville team and by two scores to nationally ranked Rabun Gap from Georgia.  Only, the Tigers proceeded to take the Eagles apart piece-by-piece in a 21-14 victory.  Who’s the best team in Ohio now?  The Massillon coaches knew how special this squad was going to be.  But obviously the prognisticators are working with flawed tools and can’t see that.

St. Edward scored its two touchdowns via a long run on its play of the game and against a prevent defense at the end.  In between those two scores, Massillon put up 21 straight points and racked up 386 yards of offense to the Eagles’ 141.  The Tigers did it first with a crushing running attack, featuring junior back Savior Owens, who carried the ball 32 times for 162 yards (5.1 ave.) and two TDs.  Then there was junior quarterback Mandwell Patterson, who completed 17 of 25 passes for 157 yards and a score, with most of the work coming in the first half, while helping his team build a 21-7 halftime lead.  He spread his passes around to seven different receivers.  Finally, the youthful defense is now showing maturity and thus executed the game plan well.

And let’s not forget the rocking crowd of thousands at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium that generated a playoff game atmosphere throughout the contest.  Their support of this team is unmatched by any other school in the country.

The victory marks Massillon’s fourth consecutive win over St. Edward covering the past four years.  And in two of those years the Eagles went on to capture the Division I state championship.  And, in all four wins the Tigers were able to successfully run the ball.  In this particular game they often went to a tight formation with Owens in the wildcat position, who aimed for the center of the line.  It was there that Massillon owned a 40-pound per man advantage.  When a pass was called for, Patterson took over and once again demonstrated uncanny accuracy with his arm and sack avoidance with his feet.  As a result, the Tigers were able to convert 7 of 14 third down conversions and 2 of 2 fourth down tries.

On defense, Massillon used just three linemen, with minimal blitzing, while committing the remaining players to rush containment and pass defense.  Ed’s stellar running back Brandon White carried 19 times for 157 yards and a touchdown.  But aside from his 66-yard run on the game’s first play, he was 18 totes for 91 yards (5.1 ave.).  In the passing game, however, quarterback Jonny Evanchick completed just 8 of 18 for 107 yards and one TD, with one interception.  But the telling stat was third down conversions, where the Eagles were successful on just 2 of 9.

St. Edward received the opening kickoff and returned it to the 34.  From there White took a handoff and quickly sped through the left side of the Tiger line.  Once to the sideline he would not be caught.

Massillon responded with a 10-play, 73-yard drive, ending when Owens carried the ball in from the five.  The Tigers quickly had another chance for a score when the Eagles fumbled the ensuing kickoff but were stopped on downs.

In the second quarter, after St. Ed’s was halted at the Massillon 34, the Tigers were on the march again, this time driving 66 yards in six plays.  The score came when Owens broke through the line and raced 45 yards to paydirt, making the score 14-7.

It might have remained that way at halftime when the Eagles dropped a punt at the Tiger eight with 3:55 left.   But the home squad was not one to waste an opportunity.  A second down pass to Gio Jackson Jr. gave Massillon life at their own 21.  Then there was an 18-yard screen pass to Owens that advanced the ball to Eds 48.  Next was a pretty 24-yard strike to Deontay Malone from a rolling right Patterson that put the ball at the Eagle six with 40 seconds left in the half.  The punctuation came when Patterson hit a wide-open tight end Logan Allman in the end zone.  Mateo Herrera completed the scoring with his third PAT kick.

The second half was focused on Massillon milking the clock with their run game and St. Edward trying to find any kind of offense that worked.  Nevertheless, each team had an opportunity.  In the third quarter, the Tigers were at the Eagle 21 with 2nd and 8, but threw an interception in the end zone.  In the fourth, the Eagles advanced to the Massillon 38, but Ja’Dyn Williams (9 tackles, 0.5 TFLs, 1 fumble recovery, 1 interception) stepped in front of the receiver and picked off the pass.  Eds eventually got untracked with two and a half minutes left in the game when they marched 69 yards in six plays.  The score came when Evanchick completed a 43-yard pass to Johah Koopman with 1:30 left to play.  The subsequent onside kick was then dribbled to Massillon’s Jadyce Thigpen,  followed by the Tigers taking a couple of knees to end the game.

With the win and potentially the next five Massillon would likely be in position take first or second place in the computer rankings and receive a bye in the first round.  For the Eagles, they are expected to once again learn from this loss and continue on toward a successful season.

Next week the Tigers (3-2) will host Football North from Ontario (1-3).  St. Edward will host Bishop McNamara from Maryland (2-2).

Eli Moore (8), Tra’Yon Williams (27), James Wallace Jr. (50)

Gio Jackson Jr.  (21), Makhi Boone (3)

Gio Jackson Jr. (21), Brodon  Moore (4)

R’Celle Hill (41)

Savior Owens (1), Marcus Garner Jr.  (60), BP Paulozzi (32), Gavin Dubinsky (34)

Chayce White (35), Ryan Mikovsky (7)

Chayce White (35), Zach Hackleman (8)

William Hymes (34),

Christian Culler (2)

Head Coach Nate Moore with son Eli Moore

Savior Owens (1), Robert Blakely (59), Manny Patterson (10), Marcus Garner Jr. (60), Sabastian Harper (3),

Tra’Yon Williams (27), Sabastian Harper (3), Anthony McMullen  Jr. (24), Ve’vaughn Wiliams (30)

Manny Patterson(10), Tra’Yon Williams (27), Jadyce Thigpen (44), De’vaughn Williams (30)

Samuel Dossous (91), Bennie Anthony (83), Braylon Pachis (38), Travis Shaw (40)

Head Coach Nate Moore with son Eli Moore

De’vaughn Williams (30), Coach J.P. Simon, Manny Patterson (10), R’Celle Hill (35), Tra’Yon Williams (27)