Football Xtra

Red Knights, Wildcats set to clash

Toronto looks to knock rival Edison from ranks of the unbeaten

RICHMOND -- The Edison and Toronto football teams are set to meet in the biggest game so far this season.

The undefeated Wildcats and the one-loss Red Knights are set to renew their rivalry at 7 p.m. Friday night at the Edison Unified Sports Complex.

Edison enters the game coming off of a 42-14 victory against Akron North last Friday night at home on Homecoming.

"I thought we played much better compared to our opener," Edison (5-0) head coach Mike Collopy said. "I thought we played really well in the first half. I just thought we very undisciplined in the third quarter, and we let some things get away from us.

"I thought we played extremely hard, but at times, I don't think we played very smart. I was happy with our level of play.

"They had a lot of athletes. They had size on the perimeter.

"You're not going to play a perfect game, but I was disappointed with how we handle things."

Toronto enters the game coming off of a 41-21 win against Oak Glen up at the Bears Den.

"Give credit to Oak Glen, they wanted to test Russ Dickinson," Toronto (4-1) head coach Josh Franke said. "They wanted to stop the run. They loaded the box. They made us throw the football.

"Our passing game was on from the start. Our first play was a 90-yard pass for a touchdown. Russ has gained confidence. He has taken control of the offense well. Russ has shown he is more than capable of beating teams with his arm."

The boys from the Gem City have talent all over the field in all three phases of the game.

"They have kids getting looks from major colleges on both sides of the ball," Collopy said. "They are big up front. They have a lot of athletes, they move them around and that makes them tough to defend."

For Toronto, Edison is definitely a step up as far the level of competition goes.

"Absolutely," Franke said. "Edison is a good program. Coach Collopy has brought a lot to that program. They are on a 17-game regular season winning streak.

"We are going to have our hands full Friday night. They have got 60-plus players. We have 35. They pretty much double us in that respect. They are much bigger than we are.

"They are a good team. They are physical. They run a nice gap scheme. It is similar to what we run. Our kids are familiar with it. We just have to teach this week in practice.

"They have some good players. They have some good athletes. They like to run quick passes – hitches and screens. They make you cover all over the field."

Toronto is outscoring its opposition, 182-57, through five games. The Red Knights have scored at least 34 points in four of their five games, while the defense has pitched two shutouts.

"Defensively, they are aggressive," Collopy said. "They blitz. They like to bring pressure. They create problems on special teams. They are tough to handle in all three phases. We are going to have to play well if we want to have an opportunity to win the game."

Edison has outscored its opponents, 185-35. The Wildcats have scored at least 34 points in every game, and the Silver-and-Black have also posted two shutouts.

"They are tough," Franke said. "They are tough, and they are physical up front. Their defensive line compares to Weir's. They are physical. They are fast. Their linebackers are aggressive. They have a good secondary.

"They are not going to let you beat them deep. They play off the ball. You are not going to be able to take the top off. They make you throw underneath. They make you earn everything you get."

Dickinson will be making his third career start at quarterback against Edison. Dickinson was forced into duty when starting quarterback Zeb Kinsey went down with an injury in the second quarter in the team's Week 3 loss to Weir. Kinsey ended up needing surgery on his foot and is out for the rest of the season.

Even with the change at quarterback, the Red-and-White have not really made any major changes to their offense.

Not really," Collopy said. "Coach Franke has a good offensive scheme. They utilize their athletes.

"They have a different quarterback now, but that's not to take anything away from Russ Dickinson. They've not missed a beat with him in there. Anytime you have to replace one kid, you don't ask the new kid to do all of the same things, but they have not missed a beat.

"They have different punt formations. They have not had to punt a lot because of how good their offense is. We are going to have to our heads up on defense."

On the other side, JD Henderson will be making his sixth start at quarterback for the Wildcats. Henderson backed up standout Gage Cline last season. Edison also hasn't made major changes to its offense this season.

"He has shown he is more than capable of throwing the football," Franke said. "He has a strong arm. He is going to develop into a really good quarterback. He can beat you with his legs.

"They have a good offensive line. We haven't seen a lot of quarterback runs, but that is something we are going to prepare for this week.

"I am sure there are some things they have been holding back until the time comes when they needed them. They haven't played any close games. They haven't come close to showing what all they can do. I think you are going to see a lot more out of them this Friday night."

Henderson and the Wildcats have faced a lot of pressure from teams this season, but Edison continues to be successful on the offensive side of the ball.

"We have (seen a lot of pressure), but every team is different," Collopy said. "We want to continue to do what we do well. We want to try and put our kids in the best positions so they can do their best.

"We want to utilize our weapons. You can't stop everything. We are going to take what the defense gives us. We want to continue to execute on the offensive side of the ball."

Both teams are solid when it comes to special teams. Both teams have dangerous return men. Toronto has had some issues this season in that phase of the game.

"It is what it is," Franke said. "We are trying to change things. We are trying to use different schemes.

"We fully expect them to try and take advantage of some of the miscues we have had on special teams. We are going to be prepared for that. They are not going to be able to catch us off guard. We expect that."

Rivalry games are always special.

"I talked to Timmy Ohalek about that today," Collopy said. "It is always a big game when you have teams that border each other's school district. The kids all know each other.

"The game is going to come down to who can execute their gameplan better, who is going to be fundamentally sound and who eliminates the mistakes and the turnovers.

"We had a good practice today. We had a productive practice, and we are going to need to continue to do that the rest of the week."

The rival between the communities goes back many years.

"It is a huge rivalry," Franke said. "My dad has talked about the old Toronto-JU games. The communities are close together.

"Last year, they handled us pretty well. We thought we had a decent team last year. They came right after us. They were prepared. They ran through us last year."

The Wildcats defeated the Red Knights, 42-6, last season at Clarke Hinkle Field.

"I'm sure, but every year it is a new game," Collopy said. "We are not going to get credit for beating them before. All that matters is who plays the best come Friday night.

"They are going to be motivated. Our kids are going to be motivated. We are just trying to get a good performance from our team. Every year is different."

Last year's outcome won't impact this season's result on the field, however, there is still the mental aspect that must be overcome by the Red Knights.

"Absolutely," Franke said. "We were battered and bruised after that game last year. We have really thought about that game.

"In the long days of summer, when we needed to motivate the kids, we brought up that game. We used it as motivation. You want to play a good game, and we did not do that last year.

"Last year, the game was lopsided. It definitely was not our best game. We are looking to play much better Friday night.

"Win or lose, you always want to give your best effort. If we come out and play hard and give our best effort, it will make the outcome Friday night a lot easier to accept."

This season, both teams are currently in position to make the playoffs once again. Edison enters this week ranked No. 8 in the Ohio Division V Region 17 rankings, while Toronto enters this game ranked No. 10 in the Division VII region 25 rankings.