2016 Ohio high school football Division I Region 2 preview

Video: Sophomore year
See highlights of Tadas Tatarunas in action last season


Players to Watch

* Tadas Tatarunas, Junior QB, Mentor
Tatarunas threw for 2,963 yards and 24 touchdowns last year.

* Jaylen Harris, Senior WR, Cleveland Heights
Harris owns 20 offers, including Ohio State, Alabama, Michigan State, Michigan, Penn State, Georgia and Tennessee.

* Kyle Vantrease, Senior QB, Stow
The Buffalo commit has thrown for 3,435 yards and accounted for 44 touchdowns in two years.

* Chris Glaser Jr., Senior OL, Solon
Glaser is a Miami (Ohio) commit.

* Michael Miranda, Senior OL, Stow
Miranda is a Penn State commit.

* Dominique Robinson, Senior QB, Canton McKinley
Robinson is a Miami (Ohio) commit.

* Kadeem Trotter, Senior DB, Canton McKinley
Trotter is a Syracuse commit.

* Jake McCurry, Senior WR, Solon
McCurry set single-season school records for receptions (60) and receiving yards (930) last year. He had 11 touchdowns. Teams To Beat

* Mentor – 8-4, Region 1 quarterfinalist
The Cardinals return one of the state's top underclass quarterback prospects in junior Tadas Tatarunas (6-foot-4, 200 pounds), who threw for 2,963 yards and 24 touchdowns last year. Defensively Mentor returns a ton of talent, including senior defensive back Michael Ballentine (6-0, 178 with 114 tackles) and senior linebacker Ryan Bischof (6-2, 220 with 164 tackles).

* St. Edward (Lakewood) – 14-1, D-I state champion, Region 1 champion
The Eagles matched expectations last season and captured the program's third state title and second straight. Graduation hit hard. Senior defensive back Melvin Jackson (5-11, 165) holds an offer from Toledo after 65 tackles last year. Junior kicker Mason Lawler (6-3, 187) is a good one. Senior defensive end Justin Herold (6-1, 255 with 82 tackles) is one to watch.

Teams To Watch

* McKinley (Canton) – 7-4, Region 1 first round
After going 3-7 in 2014, the Bulldogs earned the program's 23rd playoff berth in last year. Senior quarterback Dominique Robinson (6-3, 215) is committed to Miami (Ohio). Senior defensive back Kadeem Trotter (6-3, 196) is committed to Syracuse. Senior defensive lineman Reggie Corner (6-0, 233) is headed to Akron. He had 56 tackles and eight tackles for loss last year.

* St. Ignatius (Cleveland) – 5-4
The Wildcats and legendary coach Chuck Kyle (entering his 34th season) are coming off a rare season with no postseason berth. Key returning seniors include receiver James Leyden (6-2, 225 with an offer from Youngstown State), offensive lineman John Spellacy (6-1, 285 committed to East Carolina) and kicker Colin Goodfellow (6-2, 190).

* Solon – 9-3, Region 1 quarterfinalist
The Comets made the playoffs for the 15th time in 17 years last season. Expect another postseason berth. Senior offensive lineman Chris Glaser (6-4, 270) has committed to Miami (Ohio). He chose the Redhawks over Virginia, Syracuse, Cincinnati and Iowa State. Other key returning seniors include defensive back Darryl Sinclair (5-10, 165 with an offer from Bowling Green), receiver Jake McCurry (6-0, 180), quarterback Joe Bubonics (5-9, 160), running back Melvin Jackson (5-10, 175) and offensive lineman Nate Westrich (5-11, 250). McCurry set single-season school records for receptions (60) and receiving yards (930) last year and had 11 touchdowns. Sinclair doubles as a receiver and had 1,000-plus all-purpose yards and 13 touchdowns. Head coach Jim McQuiade is 110-40 in 13 years at Solon and 186-102 in 27 years overall.

* Stow-Munroe Falls (Stow) – 13-1, state semifinalist, Region 1 finalist
The Bulldogs have reached 10 wins two times in the last three years and were in the Final Four last season. Expect another solid run. Senior quarterback and Buffalo commit Kyle Vantrease (6-3, 233) has thrown for 3,435 yards and accounted for 44 touchdowns in two years. Senior offensive lineman Michael Miranda (6-4, 285) is committed to Penn State.

Keep An Eye On

* Austintown-Fitch (Youngstown) – 7-4, Region 1 first round
The Falcons return junior quarterback Nate Fowler (5-10, 160), who threw for 588 yards and five touchdowns last year. Also back is junior running back Randy Smith (5-8, 16), who ran for 560 yards and five touchdowns. Senior receiver JC Mikovich (5-7, 150) was the team leader in receptions (19), receiving yards (206) and receiving touchdowns (2).

* Cleveland Heights – 4-5
The Tigers have one of the state's top prospects in senior receiver Jaylen Harris (6-5, 210), who owns 20 offers including Ohio State, Alabama, Michigan State, Michigan, Penn State, Georgia and Tennessee.

* Euclid – 10-3, Region 1 semifinalist
The Panthers went from 4-5 to the playoffs. Line play will be strong with the return of seniors Jaylin Nolden (6-4, 200) and Terrell Lee (6-1, 260).

* GlenOak (Canton) – 7-4, Region 1 quarterfinalist
The Eagles made the playoffs for the seventh time in nine years last season.

* Jackson (Massillon) – 5-5
The Polar Bears are 17-13 the last three years. Senior defensive back Dillon Dingler (6-2, 195) was all-Northeast Inland District last year.

Also In This Region

Berea-Midpark (Berea) 6-4
John Marshall (Cleveland) 4-6
Rhodes (Cleveland) 5-5
Lakewood 1-9
Shaker Heights 3-7
Cuyahoga Falls 0-10
Hoover (North Canton) 2-8