Tiger Football Schedules Have Stretched Far and Wide

Tiger Football Schedules Have Stretched Far and Wide

 In 1932 legendary Massillon Head Coach Dave Stewart loaded his team onto a train and traveled over 300 miles to the center of Pennsylvania to face Harrisburg in a high school football game.  It was the first time that the Tigers had ever played a team that was not from the state of Ohio.  And it would not be the last.

Since that first match and over a span of some 93 years Massillon has played 51 different non-Ohio teams.  But it wasn’t necessarily by choice.  Throughout most of the Tigers’ 130-year history they have been classified as an independent team; i.e., not a member of an organized league.  That poses an immediate problem in terms of the ability to schedule Ohio teams.

With nearly the rest of the teams in the state residing in a various conferences, most are committed to playing league games in Weeks 4 through 9.  That leaves just the first three weeks of the season as the only slots available to schedule Ohio opponents, except for the annual Week 10 match against rival Canton McKinley.

The second issue is that for the past ten years Massillon has developed into a formidable program that most potential foes, particularly public schools, would much rather avoid.  Except of course for the inner-city teams that are more than willing to come in for a pay day.

One of the few respites was from 1963 through 1979 when the Tigers were members of the legacy All-American Conference.  During that time they faced just one out-of-state opponent, Altoona, Pennsylvania, in a 5-game series.

Regardless, Massillon has always scheduled non-Ohio teams from time to time.  In fact, including that initial match in 1932, Massillon has played 60 non-Ohio teams.  From 1936 through 1942, covering the latter years of legendary Coach Paul Brown and for a couple years thereafter, the Tigers played 16 of these foreign entities.  But mostly, it’s been just one game in a given year.

But that all changed in 2015 when Nate Moore became the head coach.  With his program firmly in place following three years of growing pains, it was time to take the next step.  It started with a game against nationally-ranked East St. Louis.  In one of the more exciting contests ever played at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium, Massillon outlasted the Missouri team by the score of 46-40.  The win kick-started the Tiger program into national prominence, leading to back-to-back undefeated regular seasons and three consecutive trips to the playoff state finals.  Then in 2023, they captured the title to cap off yet another unbeaten season, while enjoying multiple Top-25 national rankings.

But, throughout that time scheduling has become an even more dire issue, as the only teams in Ohio willing to schedule have been a few long-time rivals and the major parochial schools.  So, Coach Moore has annually been forced to search the entire country to fill the slate.  In fact, his teams over the past eight years have played 22 games against non-Ohio teams.  Fortunately, they have also enjoyed success against them with a 17-5 mark.  While some have been moderately good, several others own national rankings, including the following:

• East St. Louis, MO
• Valdosta, GA
• Bergen Catholic, NJ
• DeMatha Catholic, MD
• Rabun Gap-Nacoochee, GA
• Football North, ONT

For the record the Tigers have historically played 82 non-Ohio games against 51 different teams from 20 different states, plus Canada and the United Kingdom, while producing a win-loss mark of 69-13.  The most common state is Pennsylvania, involving 22 games with 12 teams, with a record of 19-3.  Within that state, the most common opponent was Altoona.  The two teams matched up for five games in a series that began in 1964 and then another 2-game series in 1987 and ’88.

Massillon fans have seen four different teams from Indiana, highlighted by North Central, from Indianapolis.  The two faced off in five consecutive games, with Central winning the one played in the Hoosier Dome.

On the lighter side was the game against NFL Academy-London, which was played in Oregon, and the ten games against five different teams from Ontario, Canada.  But not so light was sports academy Football North, with which the two teams split a pair of matches.

Below is a map depicting the different states involved in these games.

The Massillon “Coaches House”

The Massillon “Coaches House”

by Carter E. Strang

From 1954 – 1964, a trio of consecutive Massillon head football coaches — Tom Harp, Lee Tressel, and my father, Leo Strang — and their families lived at 818 17th St., earning it the nickname the “Coaches House.”

If its walls could speak, they would recount tales of Massillon Tiger football triumphs, perseverance, achievements, tradition, and rich history.

The Massillon Coaches House

Massillon has Experienced Several College/Pro Venues

Massillon has Experienced Several College/Pro Venues

In 1940 Coach Paul Brown’s formidable Massillon squad (state and national champions) was scheduled to play a football game in Alliance.  However, the match was enormous, with the Aviators coming off of a 7-1-1 record from the prior year and with their sole loss coming at the hands of the Tigers.  In addition, with thousands of fans from both cities expected to attend, Alliance’s Mount Union Stadium was deemed simply too small to host such a game.  So, it was moved to the Akron Rubber Bowl.  It was a sound decision as the stadium that night was filled to capacity with over 33,000 patrons in attendance.  It was also first high school football game that Massillon had ever played in a major college stadium.  Incidentally, Massillon won that night, 40-0.

Over the next 85 years Massillon would visit several other college facilities.  Some were for regular season games, while others were for playoff matchups, with the large stadiums used in order to accommodate the many Tiger fans that travel to road games.  And then there were a few classics.

The most frequently visited stadium is the now demolished Akron Rubber Bowl, where the Tigers played 29 games.  Their record in those is 17-12, including 9-4 during the regular season and 8-8 in the playoffs.  Included in these were many memorable ones that were witnessed by some very large crowds.  Here are those that stand out:

• Niles McKinley (1964) – The Red Dragons took a 48-game winning streak into the Week 2 contest to face first-year Massillon head coach Earl Bruce. In front of 30,128 fans, the Tigers overcame an early 8-0 deficit and took a 14-8 lead into halftime.  And that score held up.  Bruce remarked after the game that, “it was the night I became Tiger.”  Massillon would go on to finish 10-0 and capture their 22nd state championship.
• Cincinnati Moeller (1981) – Traditionally strong Massillon was scheduled to face upstart Moeller in game that would presumably establish Ohio’s modern-day dominant team. However, some of the luster was removed as these two teams matched up earlier than expected, in the prior year’s playoff state championship game.  The Crusaders ended up winning 24-6 at the Rubber Bowl in front of nearly 24,000 fans.
• Cleveland St. Ignatius (1991) – It was in the state semifinals that Massillon and Ignatius battled it out, with 20,156 patrons in attendance. With the score tied 7-7 entering the fourth quarter, the Tigers connected on a long pass to Jason Stafford for the go-ahead score.  But the extra point attempt was just wide on account of the narrower-width college goal post.  Subsequent to that, the Wildcats tallied in the final seconds and went away with a 14-13 victory.  Iggy would capture the state title the following week.
• Canton McKinley (1994) – In Week 10 host Massillon defeated McKinley 42-41 in overtime to capture the 100^th game in that long rivalry. Only, they would meet again two weeks later in a Rubber Bowl playoff matchup.  This time, it was the Bulldogs that prevailed, in front of 29,110 fans, by the score of 27-20.
• Brunswick (1996) – 6,500 fans braved the six inches of snow that fell throughout the contest in an event that resembled anything but football. Massillon found the end zone in third quarter in an 89-yard run by Christian Morgan.  But the PAT failed when the kicker slipped during the try.  Unbeaten Brunswick responded late in the fourth and subsequently converted its PAT for the win.  But first Brunswick called time out in order to remove enough snow for the kicker to have decent footing.
• Warren Harding (2002) – It was a state semifinal game against two evenly-matched teams in front of a crowd of 22,000. Fittingly, it went into overtime.  But just like the St. Ignatius game described above, the Tigers missed the extra point and lost the game.
• Canton McKinley (2005) – The Tigers entered the Week-10 rivalry game unbeaten, but were defeated soundly by the Bulldogs, 38-8. Three weeks later they play again, in the Rubber Bowl.  This time, it was Massillon that controlled the action and routed McKinley, 21-3.
• Lakewood St. Edward (2005) – One couldn’t ask for a colder Saturday afternoon for this Division 1 state semifinal matchup, with temperatures in the low teens and a brisk wind blowing in from the open end of the Bowl. The unbeaten Eagles were posed to advance, owing to a 17-7 lead late in the fourth quarter.  But the gritty Tigers, led by All-Ohio player Brian Gamble, found a way to score twice, helped by successful conversion of a 3^rd and 30 situation, and won a classic game, 21-17.

University of Akron’s InfoCision Stadium – The Akron Rubber Bowl is gone now, only to be replaced by InfoCision.  There, the Tigers own a 3-3 record.  The best game occurred in in 2017 when Massillon defeated Akron Hoban 17-14 in the playoffs to advance to the state finals, including survival of a final Hoban TD push near the goal line.

University of Cincinnati’s Nipper Stadium – In 1980 Massillon traveled to Cincinnati to face Moeller in the playoff state championship game in an event that drew 22,751 fans.  It was the second largest crowd ever to attend an Ohio single high school football game.  The Crusaders enjoyed a 30-7 victory in coach Jerry Faust’s last forray as head coach before departing for Notre Dame.

Kent State University’s Dix Stadium  – The 2012 Round 2 playoff game showcased a rematch of Massillon and Canton McKinley.  This one was all Tigers, behind Ryne Moore’s 227 rushing yards, in a 28-18 victory

Ohio State Stadium – The OHSAA’s very first playoff games were held in 1972 at Ohio State.  Owing to a 10-0 record Massillon qualified (only one team per region at that time) and played in the first of two state semifinal games.  In spite of leading 14-3 at the half, the Tigers fell to Cincinnati Princeton, 17-14.  With Chris Spielman in the lineup, Massillon would return to Ohio State ten years later to face Moeller in the state finals, but came up short, 35-14.  The crowd of 31,409 was the largest ever to attend an Ohio high school football event (two games held).

Youngstown University’s Stambaugh Stadium – Two games were played in Younggstown against host Ursuline.  Unfortunately, the Tigers did not fair well in either, losing 23-13 and 23-14.

Massillon has also played in four different professional stadiums, involving seven different games.

Cleveland Municipal Stadium – In 1945 The Tigers tied Cathedral Latin 6-6 and in 1947 they lost to Latin 16-12.  In 1961, Massillon defeated Parma 21-20 and would go to finish the year 11-0 and capture both the state and national championships.

Cincinnati Bengals’ Riverfront Stadium – In 1990 the Tigers participated in the Buddy LaRosa Classic.  There, they defeated Kentucky’s Covington Catholic, 39-14.  Falando Ashcrarft and Travis McGuire combined for 242 yards rushing to spearhead the attack.

Cincinnati Bengals’ Paul Brown Stadium – The Tigers play two games in classics at this stadium.  The first occurred in 2005 when Massillon bounced Cincinnati Elder, 35-31.  The Tigers’ Brian Gamble had huge game that day, rushing for 173 yards on just 15 carries (11.5 ave.) and scoring a pair of touchdowns.  Massillon finished as Division I state runner-up that year.  The second was in 2006, with Moeller coming out on top, 48-14.

Indianapolis Colts’ Hoosier Dome – In the late 1980s and early 1990s Massillon and Indianapolis North Central went at it with a 5-game series.  Four games were played in Massillon, with the Tigers winning in all four.  The lone game in Indianapolis was played at the Hoosier Dome.  But with Massillon struggling that year, they fell 35-20 to the host team.

Then there were the two oddballs in this story.

Columbus Historic Crew Stadium – In 2023 Massillon faced Cincinnati Anderson in the Division II state semifinals.  The venue was a professional soccer arena.  Although it was a fine facility for the fans, the team needed to be spread among two different locker rooms.  But it didn’t affect the outcome, as the Tigers prevailed in big way, winning 55-7.  The following week Massillon would capture its first ever playoff state championship.

Nike Headquarters – The other oddball occurred the following year in the season opener when the Tigers traveled to Beaverton, Oregon, to face NFL Academy London.  The game was held at the Nike Complex on a field that was nearly devoid of appropriate seating.  Nevertheless, Massillon took care of business and came away with a 35-20 victory.  Quarterback Jalen Slaughter led the way by completing 29 (2^nd in the record book) of 44 passes (5^th) for 403 yards (2^nd) and 3 touchdowns.  Nine passes went to Braylyn Toles and 7 were caught by Ricardo Wells.

Overall, the Tigers have been fortunate enough to have played in twelve different non-high school venues.  Given that most of these games were played against top competition, one wouldn’t expect domination in the win-loss column.  But Massillon has held its own, producing an overall record of 26-23-1.  And the players had great experiences playing in front of some very large crowds.

The Playoffs for Massillon Begins on Friday

The Playoffs for Massillon Begins on Friday

The OHSAA playoff format for this season has been reduced from sixteen teams in each region to twelve, effective in each of the seven divisions.  The impact is that a third of the participating schools now earn byes for Round 1.  The change came about following a request made by Ohio’s high school coaches.

In 2020 the OHSAA intended to increase the number of regional qualifiers from eight to twelve, but the plan was not implemented due to the high number of game cancellations on account of Covid.  Anticipating related problems with the Harbin rankings, the OHSAA thus invited all schools to participate.  The following year, the OHSAA increased the number of regional qualifiers from eight to sixteen, citing the enjoyment of participation.  However, many believed the change was simply a “money grab” when the OHSAA at the same time assumed control of ticket sales and retained all the revenue.  But now it is believed that the 12-team format will remain for awhile.  And it’s probably the right number to assure that the best eight teams qualify, given the inherent flaws within the Harbin system.

With Round 1 now in the books, it’s time for the heavyweights to finally join the fray.  For Massillon, the bye was much needed following an emotional 21-14 victory over Canton McKinley.  A time to rest and heal up, a time to revisit the fundamentals and a time to get re-energized.  Friday night the Tigers (7-3) will host the Vikings (9-2) of North Canton Hoover, which advanced following last week’s victory over Columbus Northland.

Aside from statistical and strength-of-schedule comparisons between the two teams for this specific game, there is a lot of successful history for the Tigers under current Massillon Head Coach Nate Moore when it comes to playing suburban schools.

Moore was hired in 2015 and, although his squad did not qualify that first year owing to a 4-6 record, the Tigers have been to the playoffs in each and every year since that inaugural season, which is an achievement that few coaches around the state can match.  His overall record in nine years of playoff participation is a remarkable 32-8, which includes a state championship in 2023, six regional titles and four state finals appearances.  Compare that to the nine previous Massillon coaches, who combined for a mark of just 28-22.  However, it should be noted that most of those games were against Division I competition.

Nevertheless, there is little difference in performance capability between Division I and Division II suburban schools.  Moore’s record there is  a very fine 23-3, with all of the losses occurring during regional play, including:

• 2016 – Dublin Scioto (7-3), Round 1, 21-31
• 2021 – Uniontown Green (8-2), Regional finals, 25-26
• 2024 – Big Walnut (10-0), Regional finals, 7-14

The average score in all 26 games is 31-13 in favor of the Tigers.  Eleven times Massillon played a suburban team at home, winning ten of them.  The average score in those is 40-15.  On neutral fields, Moore’s record is 12-2, with an average score of 33-11, while the lone game on the opponent’s field resulted in a 43-13 pounding of No. 2 seeded Perry.

Records of the opponents don’t seem to matter much either.  Against undefeated teams Moore has won four of five, with an average score of 34-15.  Against 9-1 and 8-2 teams he is a combined 8-0.

The most common opponents played were Perry, with a 3-0 record, Westerville South, with a 3-0 record, and Big Walnut, with a 2-1 record. The Tigers faced Canal Winchester, Uniontown Lake and Green twice each, winning five of six.  Moore is also 1-0 against Hoover, with a 48-23 victory in 2020.

Just for completeness, Moore is 6-1 against city-type schools and 3-4 against parochial schools Akron Hoban (2-3) and Cincinnati LaSalle (1-1).

In regular season games against suburban schools Moore has a record of 30-3, with the three losses coming during his first three years.  When added to the playoff mark the combined record is a whopping 53-6.

Below is a list of past games played against North Canton:

• 2020, Playoffs Round 2, Massillon, 48-23
• 2009, Playoffs Round 1, Massillon, 17-10
• 2008, Playoffs Round 1, North Canton, 14-7
• 2003, Playoffs Round 1, Massillon, 45-14
• 2002, Playoffs Round 1, Massillon 31-0
• 2001, Playoffs Round 3, Massillon, 27-7

The numbers in the story above show that history is not necessarily on the side of the Vikings.  No. 1, Massillon has simply dominated suburban schools with Moore at the helm, even in the playoffs when facing the better teams.  No. 2, they are playing at home, where they have won 11 of 12 playoff matches.  No. 3, most scores have not been close, with the Tigers winning three-quarters of the games by at least three touchdowns.  And No. 4, the Tigers have won the last 27 games against Stark County opponents.  Nevertheless, the two teams still need to play on Friday.  Does Hoover have the tools it needs to pull the upset?  We will see come Friday.

A Look Back at Past Massillon Teams – Part…

A Look Back at Past Massillon Teams – Part 10 – The 1999 Season

This is the tenth of a 10-part series looking back at all of the Massillon teams of the 1990s.

Head Coach: Rick Shepas (2nd Year)
Overall Record: 10-1
Regular Season Record: 10-0
Playoff Results: Division I, Region 3, 1st; lost to Perry in the first round
Key Players: Quarterback Dave Irwin, running back Jesse Scott, wide receiver Rocky Price, wide receiver Joe Price, wide receiver Rocky Dorsey, linebacker Dan Studer
All-Ohio: Ellery Moore (1st), Rocky Dorsey (SM), Jesse Scott (SM)

A new head coach in Massillon is always given a “free pass” by the fans during the his first year at the helm, thereby providing time to establish his program.  But in the second year he is then expected to produce.  For Coach Rick Shepas it couldn’t have gone any better, at least during the regular season.  Not only did the team win every game, it also handily defeated Perry, Lakewood St. Edward and Canton McKinley along the way.  All was well in Tigertown.  Only, in the playoffs it came crashing down, as the region’s No. 1 seeded Tigers stumbled right out of the gate, losing at home to Perry in the first round, 23-6.  But the year was not without a second drama incident, this one occurring prior to the season.  The focus was on 1998 Perry running back Jesse Scott, who had transferred to Massillon right after the season had ended.  That did not sit well with Panther Head Coach Keith Wakefield, who promptly filed a complaint with the OHSAA.  Only, the transfer was ruled to be legal, setting the stage for the two Massillon-Perry games to come, with Scott as the Tigers’ starting running back.

PIVOTAL GAMES

Massillon Perry (regular season) –  It had been fourteen years since Massillon  and Perry had hooked up for a football game.  What made this one happen was an unusual home-and-home contract whereby the first game (1999) would be played at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium and the second at Canton’s Fawcett Stadium, which served in this game as the home field for Perry.  In the home encounter it was all Massillon, as they ran away with a 35-14 victory in front of a large crowd of 14,185.  Each team scored in the first half, with Jesse Scott crossing the goal line from the one.  But the Tigers turned it on in the second half with fourteen points in each quarter.  In the third Scott scored on a 5-yard run and Rocky Dorsey tallied on a 22-yard pass from Dave Irwin.  After Perry closed the margin to 21-14, Massillon put the game away in the fourth on a 43-yard pass to Dorsey and a 9-yard pass to Joe Price.  The Panthers were strong against the run, holding the Tigers to just 94 yards.  But they simply couldn’t defend the pass owing to the Tigers’ speedy receivers and the accurate arm of Irwin, who ended up completing 18 of 25 passes for 273 yards and 3 touchdowns.  Price caught 6 of the passes for 61 yards and a score.  And Dorsey had his 2 TD receptions.

Lakewood St. Edward – St. Edward was not the formidable team in 1999 that they are today, entering the contest with a 3-5 record.  But the big story was the loss of quarterback Dave Irwin to a thumb injury that occurred in shop class on the day of the game.  That quickly put backup QB Brett Marshall in the spotlight.  And he didn’t disappoint, completing 8 of 13 passes for 183 yards and 3 touchdowns.  What a marvelous performance.  The Tigers led 17-7 at the half on two TD passes from Marshall and a Marshall 29-yard field goal.  The passes went to John Stanke (14 yards) and Jesse Scott (71 yards).  In the third quarter Irwin toughed it out with his thumb heavily bandaged.  He did well, completing 7 of 12 passes for 113 yards and a TD 30 yards to Jesse Scott.  But Marshall eventually relieved him and finished game off with a 60-yard toss to Dave Bumgarner, making the final tally 31-14.  Massillon rolled up 425 yards of total offense, including 125 on the ground and 300 in the air.  Anthony Battle led the receiver corps with five receptions for 75 yards.

Canton McKinley – It was unbeaten Massillon against 7-2 McKinley at Fawcett Stadium.  In an unusual start the Tigers scored in the first quarter on a 31-yard pass interception return by Steve Eyerman and then the Bulldogs countered in the second with an interception return of their own.  That made the score 7-7 at the half.  In the second half Massillon took over and completely overwhelmed the opponent by scoring 28 unanswered points and winning 35-7.  All four scores came on pass plays from Dave Irwin: Jon Stanke (12 yards), Jeremiah Drobney (10 yards), Rocky Dorsey (39-yard catch and run on a crossing pattern) and Jesse Robinson (35-yard bomb).  Irwin ended up completing 12 of 21 passes for 130 yards and 3 TDs.  Jesse Scott added 93 yards rushing, while Dorsey had five receptions and Price had four.  In the playoffs, the Bulldogs would defeat Hoover 7-6 in the first round and then lose 7-0 to Perry the following week.

Massillon Perry (playoffs) – In a surprising turnaround from the regular season game, Perry upset Region 3’s top-seeded Massillon in the first round of the playoffs, 23-6.  The big change for the Panthers was incorporating a delay blitz package that put constant pressure on Tiger quarterback Dave Irwin, who made all the difference in the first match with three touchdown passes.  The blitz was effective enough that Irwin was able to complete just 9 of 24 passes for 137 yards and zero touchdowns.  On offense, Perry this time around was also able to finish drives with a more consistent ground game.  Massillon’s lone touchdown came in the first quarter when Jesse Scott scored from the four.  Perry led in total yards, 282-213, including a 261-76 advantage on the ground.  With the win, it would appear that Perry Coach Keith Wakefield got the last laugh.  The Panthers would go on to beat McKinley 7-0 the following week, before losing 16-14 to Pickerington in the regional finals.  In the state semifinals, Pickerington would lose to eventual state champion Cleveland St. Ignatius, 48-8.