CANTON, Ohio - If, as expected,
Wayne (Huber Heights, Ohio) senior quarterback
Braxton Miller becomes the next new celebrity at Ohio State, his first two-and-a-half quarters of the Division I state championship game Saturday night in Fawcett Stadium would serve as the perfect warm-up act.
The Warriors seemed on their way to the state title behind Miller when his counterpart for the fourth-ranked team in the Xcellent 25 Football Rankings presented by the Army National Guard,
St. Edward (Lakewood), began to assert himself.
With his team trailing by two touchdowns, Eagles quarterback
Kevin Burke threw for one touchdown, rushed for a score and orchestrated the game-winning touchdown drive that gave his team a 35-28 victory and the first championship in its 61-year history.
St. Edward finishes 15-0 a year after going just 4-6 a year ago.
"Kevin was masterful all year in leading the team, leading the offense and putting people on his back," Eagles coach Rick Finotti said. "I knew he was going to do it. He's got 15 wins and no losses, and he leads an offensive unit built on the run. He leads them and he leads by example. There was no denying Kevin Burke tonight."
Wayne took a 14-7 lead early in the third quarter when Miller hit
Seth Stuart for a 57-yard touchdown pass and made it 21-7 when Miller hooked up with
Marshall Peterson for a 22-yard score with 5:58 left in the third period.
The Eagles answered on the ensuing drive, however, when Burke hit
Patrick Barry for a 10-yard score to make it 21-14. That play ended a nine-play, 73-yard drive in which Burke completed two passes and rushed for 38 yards.
An interception by St. Edward's
Avery Bailey on the second play of Wayne's next drive gave the Eagles the ball at the Warriors' 18. St. Edward then tied it at 21 two plays later on a 15-yard run by
Terrell Bates.
The Eagles took the lead with 9:53 remaining on a 6-yard run by Burke. St. Edward was called for a 14-yard holding penalty on the extra point, however, and Mike DiNunzio's attempt was no good to make it 27-21.
Wayne followed with an 81-yard drive that took 7:18 and was completed with a 2-yard touchdown run by Miller as the Warriors led 28-27, but the Eagles rallied once again after taking over with 2:28 remaining.
Burke completed three passes during the drive and Bates scored the game-winning points on a 17-yard run. Quincy Jones' two-point conversion pass from Burke make it 35-28.
Miller was intercepted on fourth-and-20 from the Wayne 36 to by Cory Blackstock to seal the victory for the Eagles.
"I didn't want to look at the scoreboard," Burke said when his team began its game-winning drive. "I had complete confidence in my offense and that we were going to get it done."
Burke rushed for 130 yards and one touchdown and was 9-for-13 passing for 89 yards and Bates contributed 106 yards and two touchdowns for the Eagles.
Those performances helped outdo Miller, who rushed for 87 yards and two touchdowns and completed 15 of 24 passes for 200 yards and two scores with two interceptions.
Wayne (Huber Heights), which began the season by splitting its first six games, finished with an 11-4 record.
"It was a good opportunity for me to make it this far," Miller said. "I always wanted to play in this atmosphere."
Said Warriors coach Jay Minton: "Braxton was sensational, but the thing about Braxton that makes him so special is how he makes his teammates feel important. It wasn't our night tonight."
Bishop Watterson (Columbus) 13, Buchtel (Akron) 12Despite committing six turnovers, Bishop Watterson (Columbus) captured its first Division III state title since 2002 by edging Buchtel (Akron) 13-12 on Saturday in Massillon Paul Brown Tiger Stadium.
Ray Cook rushed for a 3-yard touchdown with 10:50 remaining and the Eagles'
Brad McCurdy intercepted a pass from Stephen Parker with 2:02 to go to seal the victory.
Watterson held Buchtel to 91 yards on 39 attempts for a 2.3 average.
"We knew before the game that we were going to have to play four tough quarters to contain them," McCurdy said. "Our up-front guys (on defense) with Hunter Maynard and our linebackers created huge piles and we just got great pushes as a defense. The fourth quarter showed our character on defense."
Ursuline (Youngstown) 51, Coldwater 21Akise Teague rushed for 249 yards and four touchdowns and had four receptions for 94 yards and one score as the Fighting Irish dominated in Fawcett Stadium for their third consecutive Division V state championship.
Ursuline (Youngstown) finishes 15-0 and has won 21 consecutive games. Coldwater finishes 11-4.
Jarrod Ulrey covers Central and Northern Ohio for MaxPreps.com. He covers prep sports for ThisWeekSPORTS.com and can be reached at julrey@thisweeknews.com.
