Central Buckeye Conference-Kenton Trail
Jonathan Alder (D-III)
2020 Record: 8-1 (5-0)
Offense: 27.0 PPG (39th in area)
Defense: 11.9 PPG Allowed (10th in area)
Key Players: Chase Maynard, MLB; Jacob Fenik, WR; Aidan Burke, T;
Damon Hay, DT; Will Heisler, RB
Game to Watch: Week 3 @ Bloom-Carroll
The Pioneers of Jonathan Alder performed very well last season going undefeated during the regular season.
They then fell to St. Francis Desales in the third round of the playoffs.
One of the brightest spots of The Pioneers’ season was the performance of their defense that allowed an average of less than 12 points per game.
Jonathan Alder will look to replicate that same defensive success this year as the Pioneers attempt to win the conference for a second straight year.
An intriguing game for the Pioneers will be in Week 3 when they play Bloom-Carroll on the road.
Bloom-Carroll produced the best defense in the area last year allowing an average of just 4.9 points per game.
When the two teams meet in Week 3, each point on the board will be crucial as these strong defenses will likely not allow many.
London (D-III)
2020 Record: 6-2 (4-1)
Offense: 27.6 PPG (36th in area)
Defense: 11.5 PPG Allowed (6th in area)
Key Players: Isaiah Jones, OLB; Ayden Cooper, FS; J. Schooley, MLB; Richard Dodson, CB; Elijah Mitchell, CB
Game to Watch: Week 6 vs. Jonathan Alder
Much like their in-conference rival Jonathan Alder, London’s Red Raiders performed exceptionally well on defense in 2020.
The Red Raiders allowed even less points than the conference champions at Jonathan Alder.
London also scored slightly more points per game than the Pioneers in 2020 with the Red Raiders as the Red Raiders it was 27.6 while Jonathan scored just below at 27.
Yet London still ended up at the second spot thanks to two losses by one team: Jonathan Alder.
The first loss came toward the end of the regular season while the second occurred in the second round of the playoffs.
If London wants to seek higher goals than just the conference runner-ups, then its Week 6 game against the rival Pioneers will prove to be the most crucial of any game.
Shawnee (D-V)
2020 Record: 7-3 (2-2)
Offense: 23.6 PPG (53rd in area)
Defense: 14.6 PPG Allowed (21st in area)
Key Players: Max Guyer, RB; David Hawk, FS; Kaden Moore, MLB; R.J. Griffin, QB
Game to Watch: Week 1 vs. Valley View
The Shawnee Braves enjoyed a successful season in terms of their record in 2020 by going 7-3 and making it to the fourth round of the Division V playoffs.
The Braves will look to repeat that same success this year all while improving and hoping to raise their standing in the CBC-Kenton Trail.
Much like their in-conference counterparts London and Jonathan Alder, Shawnee had an effective defense in 2020 that allowed an average of just 14.6 points per game.
This defense will be crucial all season, but possibly most of all in the Braves’ Week 1 matchup against Valley View.
Valley View averaged 30.8 points per game last season and went 7-3, so the Braves will have their work cut out for them to start the season.
This game should set the tone for who Shawnee will be this year and if their defense will prove as successful as it was last season.
Tecumseh (D-II)
2020 Record: 4-4 (2-3)
Offense: 22.4 PPG (56th in area)
Defense: 19.0 PPG Allowed (39th in area)
Key Players: Braden Berner, FS; Gage Easterling, G; Andrew Lowe, OL; Alexander Adduci, OLB; Nathan Cory, QB
Game to Watch: Week 4 @ Graham
Tecumseh’s Arrows began last season slowly going 1-4 in their first four games with the three losses coming from the three teams that finished in front of them in the CBC-Kenton Trail.
This greatly brought Tecumseh down in the conference standings, yet the Arrows were still able to salvage the season by going 3-1 in their final four games and ending with an even 4-4 record.
This season it will be crucial that Tecumseh defeats Shawnee and London so as to improve their standing within the conference.
However a win in Week 4 at Graham might propel the Arrows even further by showing that they can compete with teams outside of their conference.
Bellefontaine (D-III)
2020 Record: 2-6 (1-4)
Offense: 17.5 PPG (76th in area)
Defense: 29.3 PPG Allowed (89th in area)
Key Players: Tucker Newland, QB; Tavien St Clair, QB; Ethan Yoder, WR
Game to Watch: Week 5 @ Tecumseh
Bellefontaine started the 2020 with an average 2-2 record but would lose the rest of their games ending with a 2-6 record overall.
This disappointing end to the season was filled with losses against in-conference teams like London and Tecumseh.
The Chieftains’ loss against Tecumseh’s Arrows was especially significant as it came by only one point at a score of 35-34.
This season Bellefontaine would prove their work during the offseason with a win against Tecumseh in Week 5 of this year.
This would also give the Chieftains a win on the road which is something they were only able to accomplish once in 2020.
Kenton Ridge (D-IV)
2020 Record: 1-5 (0-4)
Offense: 10.0 PPG (105th in area)
Defense: 26.3 PPG Allowed (70th in area)
Key Players: Josh Hill, WR; Noah Hill, T; Caden Ivory, G; Heath Jones, WR; Braden Holt, DE
Game to Watch: Week 3 vs. Benjamin Logan
Kenton Ridge ended the 2020 season in last place in the CBC-Kenton Trail after a shortened sic-game season.
Like many Central Ohio teams 2021 is a new year for the Cougars meaning that they have the potential to perform better this season.
One way in which Kenton Ridge could do this is by winning early on in the season.
While it may be difficult to defeat a statistical behemoth in Mechanicsburg, it is entirely possible that Kenton Ridge could prevail over its Week 3 opponent Benjamin Logan.
Central Buckeye Conference-Mad River
Graham (D-IV)
2020 Record: 7-1 (5-0)
Offense: 29.1 PPG (24th in area)
Defense: 17.3 PPG Allowed (31st in area)
Key Players: Zack Vanscoy, MLB/WR ; Tucker Nave, CB/WR; Jayden Sells, QB;
Cooper Strader, DE
Game to Watch: Week 5 @ London
Graham’s Falcons enjoyed a successful 2020 season going undefeated in the regular season and not losing a game until the second round of the playoffs.
The Falcons also had an offense that averaged about 29 points per game and had a score differential of about 12 points per game.
This means that Graham averaged a 12-point win in any given game in 2020.
This year the Falcons would hope to continue that success by continuing their dominance within the CBC-Mad River while also beating competitive non-conference teams.
Week 5 at London will give Graham a chance to do just that as the Raiders averaged around 29 points per game last year while also only allowing an average of 12.6 points.
So, the Falcons will get to show if they can compete with a talented non-conference team just as they likely would have to do in the playoffs.
North Union (D-V)
2020 Record: 8-3 (4-1)
Offense: 26.2 PPG (40th in area)
Defense: 9.3 PPG Allowed (3rd in area)
Key Players: Drue Duncan, T; Owen Davis, MLB; Ethan Young, RB; Tucker Wedding, SS; Lincoln Harrah, RB
Game to Watch: Week 5 @ Jonathan Alder
North Union’s Wildcats put together a successful 2020 campaign going 4-2 in the regular season before making it all the way to the regional semifinals in the Division 5 playoffs.
They were then defeated by Eastwood 20-14 in a nail-biting overtime game.
Last season’s success for the Wildcats was built on the back of their defense that only allowed an average of 9.3 points per game which is good for third in the area.
North Union would like to continue this defensive effectiveness and show its longevity this year against some competitive opponents.
One such opponent comes in Week 5 against Jonathan Alder who won the CBC-Kenton Trial and beat North Union in Week 1 last season.
Jonathan Alder also produced a defense that ranked 11th in the area, so it will be interesting to see which team is able to hold on to win in what should be a low-scoring affair.
Indian Lake (D-V)
2020 Record: 4-5 (3-2)
Offense: 17.1 PPG (77th in area)
Defense: 16.0 PPG Allowed (26th in area)
Key Players: Dalton Longwell, T; Logan Evans, C; Kaleb Hurley, WR; Elijah Slagle, RB
Game to Watch: Week 10 @ Graham
Indian Lake produced a moderately successful 2020 season starting slow with an 0-2 record but winning its following two games.
The rest of the season was more of the same up-and-down campaign for the Lakers as they finished with a 4-5 record while going 3-2 in the CBC-Mad River.
The shining feature of Indian Lake was its defense that only allowed 16 points per game in 2020 which is good for 16th in the area and the second best in its conference.
The Lakers will hope to improve upon this defensive skill to win even more games this season.
One opportunity for just that will be in Week 10 against Graham.
Graham’s Falcons won the CBC-Mad River last season but nearly lost to Indian Laker 28-27 in Week 5.
With a win the Lakers would show the progression they have made in the offseason and possibly secure the top spot in the conference.
Benjamin Logan (D-V)
2020 Record: 3-7 (2-3)
Offense: 22.0 PPG (58th in area)
Defense: 27.1 PPG Allowed (79th in area)
Key Players: Ian Scheiderer, WR; Kam Allen, QB; Kristian Kensler, SS; Hayden Kennaw, DE
Game to Watch: Week 2 vs. West Liberty-Salem
Benjamin Logan started off somewhat promising in 2020 with a 1-2 record yet with one of the losses coming by just one point to the eventual conference champion Graham.
The Raiders failed to ever boost its record after the first three games as they would continue to lose and win games ending with a 3-7 record.
One struggle Benjamin Logan had was at home as the Raiders went 1-3 in 2020 in its own stadium.
The Raiders would like to improve this statistic in 2021 as they play their home opener versus non-conference opponent West Liberty-Salem.
A Benjamin Logan win in this game would give the Raiders morale boost by instantly showing their progression in home games since last season.
Northwestern (D-IV)
2020 Record: 3-7 (1-4)
Offense: 15.9 PPG (82nd in area)
Defense: 29.0 PPG Allowed (87th in area)
Key Players: Kolten Berner, LB/RB; Jacob Shaffer, QB; Ethan White & Jace Foulke, OL/DL; Dawson Thomas, ATH
Game to Watch: Week 8 @ Indian Lake
Northwestern’s Warriors struggled to get their footing last year as they ranked lower than 80 in points per game and points allowed leading to a 1-4 conference record.
First year coach Nicholas Bandstra said that his team is filled with underclassmen, so his main focus has just been on the basics.
“We have been very focused on fundamental development especially with how young our roster is this year,” Bandstra said.
An important test for Northwestern will be its matchup at Indian Lake as the Lakers ranked higher in the conference last season than the Warriors.
This Week 8 matchup for Bandstra’s team would be a way to show how hard they’ve worked and how much growth they’ve made since last year.
Bandstra said he is looking forward to the regular season as he has seen his team grow in just the first week of training camp in August.
“I am very optimistic about the upcoming season,” Bandstra said. “We have seen a lot of growth in our players this first week of camp.”
Urbana (D-IV)
2020 Record: 0-8 (0-5)
Offense: 6.5 PPG (111th in area)
Defense: 43.0 PPG Allowed (110th in area)
Key Players: Levi Stapleton, SB;Cameron Murphy, DE; Braeden Stambaugh, SS; Jonathan Hildebrand, QB; Trevor Parthemore, G
Game to Watch: Week 3 vs. Bellefontaine
Urbana struggled to gain its footing last season losing each of its games and being ranked lower than 100th in both offense and defense.
The Hillclimbers will hope for a better 2021 season as they return to a normal, ten-game schedule.
This year Urbana starts the season on the road in the first two games.
Week 3 versus Bellefontaine will be crucial as it gives Urbana a chance to win at home for the first time since 2019.
The game also comes early in the season, so a win would boost the Hillclimbers’ morale as they enter conference play.