i have heard the same rumor for two weeks now and it is either the juiciest rumor or the worst kept secret on the planet...i think he might end up the next coach at Struthers and although I dont personally care for him, he has proven that he can coach. I think this is a trap job though...with howland, poland, canfield and hubbard on your schedule that could prove to be difficult road to hoe. He has superior talent at WR in the ITCL and he will not have that at Struthers...although there is some very nice young talent there. I think the AAC is in serious trouble of folding in the future anyways so maybe he doesnt have to play that schedule for very long.

Struthers has the size and talent to play with Howland, Canfield, and Poland, and they proven the last 2 years that they can play with Hubbard.

They don't have the same depth as HHS, CHS, OR PSHS... but they've been getting nearly 50 kids out for football the past few years. They were competitive against those teams back in the late 90s and early 2000s, when they'd be lucky to get 40 kids.

There's no reason not to think that they can compete in the AAC Red. They've done it before... IMO with less talent and depth than they have now.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again... if the goals are to get a winning record, compete for a conference championship, make the playoffs, and make a run... they'll certainly cross paths with better teams than the ones mentioned above.

Also... they did away with OE in the HS, so I can't imagine they'll be D3 much longer. I'm pretty sure that the Divisions will be realigned after the 2012-2013 school year. They should drop down to D4 then. Then they could drop down to the Blue Tier, perhaps?

Kimbrough, Wess, and Wilburn are all inexperienced at WR... but they've all played and started. Kimbrough and Wilburn both have breakaway speed, and Wess really came on late at CB... all 3 have shown good ball skills. Combine the 3 of them with an All AAC TE, and an accurate QB that doesn't turn the ball over... I'd say that their passing game can be at or near the top of the AAC Red. Especially if Hake gets the job. They'd still have some hard nosed RBs in Stewart and Pollifrone, and a pretty befy offensive line. On D, they'll be 4 or 5 deep at LB, and they return their entire defensive line +2.

The success of the team will hinge on the play of the offensive line.

The rest of the AAC Red is loaded with holes and question marks. Poland loses a 4 year starter at QB, a 1000 yard rusher, their leading receiver, and their best lineman. Howland loses 25+ Seniors, and will be kinda thin on the lines. Canfield loses quite a bit... notable names include Italiano, Jackson, Angelo, Rousher, and Hoelzel. This was supposed to be the year that Niles broke out, so they lose a ton too.

Struthers has as good a chance as anyone to win the AAC Red, or at least finish top 3.

Struthers has 296 boys and the basement for Division III is 243...you are closer to going Division II then Division IV. It is quite a building job needed from the ground up at Struthers in order to compete year in and year out with the best in the valley but like i said before they have some very nice talent that could get the next coach started on that path.
They wasted a year hiring Asher...most overrated coach I have ever met.

southbender12;991134 wrote:Struthers has 296 boys and the basement for Division III is 243...you are closer to going Division II then Division IV. It is quite a building job needed from the ground up at Struthers in order to compete year in and year out with the best in the valley but like i said before they have some very nice talent that could get the next coach started on that path.
They wasted a year hiring Asher...most overrated coach I have ever met.

I highly doubt you've ever met him. He went 5-5 his first year and destroyed a BETTER Campbell team. He was a good coach, but just didn't uphold to the standards of the "gridiron club".

I posted this message twice now, and neither one showed up. Grrrrr!!

Here's the gist of my post...

*296... you don't think Struthers can lose 50 or so boys in the next 2-4 years? A 15-20% decrease after getting rid of OE seems logical. Especially for a school like Struthers, which is on the edge of Youngstown. I don't know though... it's just a guess.
*Asher was a bit overrated, I'll give you that.
*His team did completely outclass Campbell in every conceivable way. The old school fans would say that this is all that matters.
*I certainly wouldn't say that his year in Struthers was a waste of time. If you're going to measure what he did at Struthers, just look at the Campbell game. Jefferson didn't have too bad of a year either.
*Struthers did go 5-5 under Asher, their best record since 2003. That has to count for something.
*Asher was just a stop gap solution. Everyone knew he wouldn't be here long.

done more then meet him my friend and please don't assume I don't know what I am talking about simply because I disagree with you....ask guys that have coached against him or with him and if they have a brain they will agree

Struthers will forever be plagued by the gridiron club, the teams of the 80's and the BOE.

Spread All Day;995589 wrote:Struthers will forever be plagued by the gridiron club, the teams of the 80's and the BOE.

Wow!

I guess the teams of the 80s shouldn't have worked so hard, been so talented, or had such high standards. What were they thinking? They set the bar too high for everyone else to live up to...

The Gridiron Club does more good than bad. I do think they need to spend more money on the team every year, instead of just sitting on it.

The Gridiron Club does need to start getting some fresh blood in there. I'm the youngest member by almost 20 years. The younger generations need to start taking more interest. My goal for 2012 is to get some people who are my age to start coming to the meetings. Just to bridge the gap a bit. I'd say at least half of the current members are old enough to be my Grandpa.

They're certainly not a plague though. They do their share to help out the community, and raise money to help the kids.

Every now and then, you surprise me with an intelligent, well thought out post. This definitely wasn't one of them.

You sound jaded...

BTrev;996163 wrote:Wow!

I guess the teams of the 80s shouldn't have worked so hard, been so talented, or had such high standards. What were they thinking? They set the bar too high for everyone else to live up to...

The Gridiron Club does more good than bad. I do think they need to spend more money on the team every year, instead of just sitting on it.

The Gridiron Club does need to start getting some fresh blood in there. I'm the youngest member by almost 20 years. The younger generations need to start taking more interest. My goal for 2012 is to get some people who are my age to start coming to the meetings. Just to bridge the gap a bit. I'd say at least half of the current members are old enough to be my Grandpa.

They're certainly not a plague though. They do their share to help out the community, and raise money to help the kids.

Every now and then, you surprise me with an intelligent, well thought out post. This definitely wasn't one of them.

You sound jaded...

No. You don't understand it. You sit in that crowd the first home game of the season, and you will hear it all. "Oh another 2-8 season, they'll never be like us" You can't keep putting pressure on these kids to be as good as those teams were... It's not going to happen. Let's be real here, that talent Struthers would have is usually off to Mooney or Ursuline at a VERY YOUNG AGE. Not like it was in the 80's where kids actually had loyalty to their towns..
The gridiron club is (and i speak for a big group of people) a waste of time. If you don't like the way the coach coaches, take it up with him... It's really a place for parents to $%%#$ out the coach for the most miniscule reasons.
I didn't see you comment about the BOE? Why is that? Because everyone knows i'm right?
I'm not saying everyone in the gridiron club is bad, or the teams of the 80's are either. Those teams are something to be proud of, as a former player.. we always looked up to them. But they are not something you can compare today's kids to! And hopefully that clears things up for you, B-Trev

Spread All Day;998023 wrote:No. You don't understand it. You sit in that crowd the first home game of the season, and you will hear it all. "Oh another 2-8 season, they'll never be like us" You can't keep putting pressure on these kids to be as good as those teams were... It's not going to happen. Let's be real here, that talent Struthers would have is usually off to Mooney or Ursuline at a VERY YOUNG AGE. Not like it was in the 80's where kids actually had loyalty to their towns..
The gridiron club is (and i speak for a big group of people) a waste of time. If you don't like the way the coach coaches, take it up with him... It's really a place for parents to $%%#$ out the coach for the most miniscule reasons.
I didn't see you comment about the BOE? Why is that? Because everyone knows i'm right?
I'm not saying everyone in the gridiron club is bad, or the teams of the 80's are either. Those teams are something to be proud of, as a former player.. we always looked up to them. But they are not something you can compare today's kids to! And hopefully that clears things up for you, B-Trev

I can somewhat agree with that. I disagree with you that they can never have that kind of success again though. I do think that if they can get the right coach in there, and give him some time, the football program can be relevant again. They're already ready to win now.

The talent has been there. It's not a lack of talent. If it were, they wouldn't have had the success that they've had in basketball, baseball, track... even bowling.

I do agree with you about the BOE. They've certainly made their share of bonehead decisions over the years.

I was in favor of the Asher hiring... and ironically enough, I'm also in favor of the Asher resignation. I'm a big fan of Carden as the AD. I think getting rid of OE is another good move. Bringing in the superintendent from Poland was smart too.

I do like some of the BOE's recent decisions. They still have a long way to go though.

And as for comparing the modern day teams to the teams from the 80s... what good does it do?

It sickens me when some of the parents/spectators yell at the coaches and players during the games. There's nothing wrong with disagreeing... being a distraction doesn't help anyone though. Let the coaches do their jobs.

I hope i'm proved wrong, but i feel like i'm right.

Spread All Day;1001676 wrote:I hope i'm proved wrong, but i feel like i'm right.

No hard feelings. We'll just have to agree to disagree.

Struthers will name a Head Coach in 2 weeks. December 20th. 14 days...

It's sure to make some people happy, and make others angry. I'm interested to see who gets the job.

I haven't been able to confirm it yet, just heresay from the players... but it seems like one of the open dates has been filled by Mogadore Field.

Also, the head coach will be named in 6 or 7 days.

Mogadore? what?
Those players know nothing B-Trev i promise.
We didn't know anything in h.s they don't either

Spread All Day;1019280 wrote:Mogadore? what?
Those players know nothing B-Trev i promise.
We didn't know anything in h.s they don't either

Haha. Good point. Just going by what Vinny told me. Never said it was true.

If it is mogodore thats bad news, why would we schedule better teams then we are already playing makes no sense at all.

It makes sense. Schedule very tough teams, so that the tough teams don't seem as tough.

It's a ballsy strategy, but when it works, it works well.

Also, Mogadore Field is a good football program... not great. They win a lot of games, and they're almost always in the playoffs, but they're always a bubble team that barely sneaks in... which leads me to believe that they don't play the toughest schedule. This year, I'm not yet convinced that they're on the same level as some of the other teams on the schedule... like Howland, Hubbard, Poland, Lakeview, etc.

5 year history...

Field was 5-5 in 2011. They finished 17th in Region 9, behind Jefferson Area (who Struthers beat 29-9), Hubbard, and Niles. Poland was 6th in Region 11. Howland was 5th in Region 5 and Canfield was 9th in Region 5. Lakeview was 11th in Region 13.

In 2010, Field was 7-3. They finished 3rd in Region 9. Hubbard had the 2 seed. Poland was 5th. Howland and Canfield wer 5th and 17th in Region 5. Lakeview was 6th in Region 13.

In 2009, Field was 8-2. They finished 8th in Region 9. Poland was 2nd and Hubbard was 4th. In Region 5, Howland was 2nd and Canfield was 4th. Lakeview was 5th in Region 13.

In 2008, Field was again 8-2 and 8th in Region 9. Hubbard was 3rd and Lakeview was 9th. Poland was 3rd in Region 11. Howland was 4th in Region 5. Canfield was 10th in Region 7.

In 2007, Field was 9-1. They were 8th in Region 9. Lakeview was 5th and Hubbard was 7th. Poland was 8th in Region 11. Howland was 1st in Region 5. Canfield was 4th in Region 7.

IMO, Field will be the 6th best team on the schedule. I see it like this, in order of most toughest to least toughest...

1. Howland
2. Hubbard
3. Poland
4. Canfield
5. Lakeview
6. Field
7. Campbell
8. Niles
9. Beaver Local

I'll probably change my mind about this a few times before the season starts, as I gather more information about each team, but that's the way I see it now.

Howland loses everyone!
I'm not sure how things are going to shake up, and with this new coach with no head coach exp. its intresting

Yeah, I hear ya.

Howland loses everyone, but they still have a good nucleus to build around. They return their center, QB, leading WR, and someone named Deveon Smith. They probably won't be as tough as they've been in the past... but they're still Howland. And Struthers still hasn't beaten them since 2001.

If not Howland at #1, then who? Poland? Canfield? Hubbard?

Plenty of time to debate it.

First thing is first though... 249 days until Campbell!

A guys this guy might be the one. You never know. Your at that point now where the average school gets a turn around and makes a comeback. Be glad you are not at the mark Campbell had. After Rozum nothing till rozum came back in 99 then left and again nothing till bayuk. 14 years of just saying next year. we lost a ton of support over those years. Kids didn't come out to play and most left. I'm proud of the ones that stepped out on the historic Knapick field and i supported them game in and game out. But its been so long that i feel Campbell is still suffering from that long drought by ways that the school has forgot what the teams before accomplished. But guys you just might have that missing gem now and hell from what i heard Zetts too. Give him a few and see what happens. you might be contending one day soon. Enjoy the trophy guys./ see you week one

I would say, with the right system and attitude, Struthers can contend this season.
Look at it: Canfield isnt what they once were,
Poland lost their everything QB
Howland Lost a lot..
Hubbard is.. well Hubbard...
Niles is up and coming, with a good hire at coach
Struthers, also up and coming maybe a little better talent wise than niles
CMHS.. ehh? Reyes but who else?
BL... -_-

If i had to put money down, Hubbard wins first year

Spread All Day;1022543 wrote:I would say, with the right system and attitude, Struthers can contend this season.
Look at it: Canfield isnt what they once were,
Poland lost their everything QB
Howland Lost a lot..
Hubbard is.. well Hubbard...
Niles is up and coming, with a good hire at coach
Struthers, also up and coming maybe a little better talent wise than niles
CMHS.. ehh? Reyes but who else?
BL... -_-

Truthfully. Campbell has a lot. there still loaded with talent. and should not have the knuckleheads they had this year. also they still have a Hughes. and he is very good. i expect good things from this team. they wanted it more then the most of the seniors. and yes Reyes will be much better. i wont predict ever again. but they do have the talent and speed still.

Stuthers has from what i was told a good size on both sides. but they always seem to have size. it is going to be a much improved struthers team i think.. a coach that's use to winning. very good things should happen..