Toronto continues EOAC slate, hosts Columbiana
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TORONTO -- The Toronto football team faces a difficult test this week as Columbiana comes to town in a big Eastern Ohio Athletic Conference matchup.
The Red Knights will look to extend their winning streak to five games as they get set to play the Clippers at 7 p.m. Friday night at Clarke Hinkle Field. Toronto is coming off of a 40-7 victory over Leetonia last week on the road.
"Defensively, we did a really nice job," Toronto (4-1) head coach Eric Meek said. "Offensively, in the first half, we worked on our passing game. I was pleased with that. We did not run Nathan (Karaffa), our quarterback, a lot because we didn't have to. Kobe Herrick and Garrett Dozier did a good job running the ball, and our offensive line did a good job blocking. We were 14-of-20 for about 260 yards. That's 70 percent.
"The only negative from the game was that we had three turnovers. We had one on a punt, we had one after a catch on a pass play, and we had one on a running play. That was the only negative I saw. We are 4-1 overall, and we are 2-0 in the league. We have a huge game upcoming against Columbiana."
The Clippers come into this week's game fresh off of a 34-14 victory over United at home.
"Columbiana runs everything," Meek said. "They use many different formations. Coach (Bob) Spaite has been around a long time. He was the head coach many, many years ago when I played at East Palestine. I have known him for a real long time. This is the first time I have had the opportunity to coach against him.
"They use a lot of different formations. Offensively, they have very good speed. They like to run the jet sweep. They have good size up front."
Quarterback Jakob Cross collected 131 yards and a touchdown on the ground, while throwing for 100 yards and two more touchdowns to lead the Clippers offensively against the Golden Eagles.
United's 14 points are the only points Columbiana has given up in the past two weeks.
"Defensively, they run a 3-4, and they love to blitz a lot," Meek said. "We have to be able to pick up the blitz."
Toronto's last two opponents -- Leetonia and Southern Local -- also liked to blitz.
"Basically it is the same," Meek said. "We have done a good job of picking it up. We have to mix the run and the pass well, and we need to score touchdowns. Defensively, we improved last week, and we are going to have to really step up this week."
After falling 48-14 at Shadyside in Week 1, Toronto has bounced back by defeating Bridgeport (60-22), Edison (34-13) and Southern Local (44-41) before beating Leetonia.
"I am very proud of our kids and our assistant coaches," Meek said. "No one expected us to be 4-1 at this point in the season. Starting right now, we start three seniors on offense, and we start two seniors on defense. We start a lot of underclassmen. They have played well. We want to keep improving."
The Clippers started the season off by losing two of their first three games. Columbiana opened with a 34-3 loss at Western Reserve, then defeated McDonald 38-37 in overtime in before being shut out 35-0 by Springfield in Week 3. Columbiana blanked Leetonia 62-0 in Week 4.
While the playoffs are still off in the distance, Toronto is paying attention to what is happening in the newly formed league
"Absolutely," Meek said. "There are four teams in the league who are 2-0, and we are one of them. We play the other three in the next three weeks, but right now we are just worried about Columbiana.
"We beat Southern Local. Not a lot of people expected us to beat them. They had a lot of kids back from last year, and we have very few. Our kids rose to the occasion."
Toronto, Columbiana, Lisbon and East Palestine are all 2-0 in league play. Overall, the Red Knights and Blue Devils are 4-1 overall, while the Clippers and Bulldogs are each 3-2.
"They do not know a lot about Columbiana," Meek said about his players. "Honestly, I don't know if Toronto has ever played Columbiana before. If they did, it was many, many years ago. They have no history with them. I do.
"I was a student-teacher there, and I coached track. East Palestine is right down the road from them. This is new to us, and it is new to them. They don't know a lot about Toronto. They are coming to our stadium. It is going to be a good atmosphere at Clarke Hinkle Field. The fans are going to be excited."
The Red Knights are healthy for the most part going into this week's big matchup.
"We have 45 players on the team, and we will dress 44 if we make it through practice tomorrow," Meek said. "We are going to take it easy. You have to be careful."
The players on the team have the normal bumps and bruises they would be expected to have at this point in the season. The one player not dressing may be receiver Jake Keenan who did not play against Leetonia.
"You need to be careful," Meek said. "You want to be physical, but you don't want to get anyone banged up."
Toronto enters the game in seventh place in the Ohio Division VII Region 25 computer rankings, while Lisbon is fourth. Columbiana is currently 11th in the Division VI Region 21 rankings.