Reiman was the one who earned most of those carries. He had 78 second-half yards on 19 carries.

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1 Massillon grounds it out in second half Chris Easterling Updated: Sunday, November 15, 2009 Jake Reiman and the rest of the Massillon offense knew exactly what the plan of attack was going to be coming out of the locker room after halftime in the Tigers' 10-7 Division I regional semifinal win over Twinsburg on Saturday night. The coaches left no doubt when they went up to the offensive personnel during the intermission. "They came right up to us and said we were coming out in Orange formation - our running formation - and we were going to pound it down their throat," said Reiman, who rushed for a career high 125 yards on 26 carries in the game. "That's what we did." While the record will show that Jeremy Geier's 40-yard field goal was the deciding points in Massillon's 10-7 win over Twinsburg at Fawcett Stadium, there is no doubting the impact the Tigers' shift in offensive attack had on determining the game. After running the ball just 12 times in the first half for 52 yards, the Tigers pounded it at Twinsburg 22 times in the second half for 88 yards. Reiman was the one who earned most of those carries. He had 78 second-half yards on 19 carries. "I still couldn't have done it without my blockers," Reiman said. "That's all it took. Them blocking, the fullback blocking. I just couldn't have done it without them." A big reason for the Tigers' success against Twinsburg was their size advantage up front. Most of Twinsburg's defenders were in the 210- to 220-pound range, compared to Massillon's sizable offensive line. So Massillon came out in an unbalanced line, flipping left tackle Brandon Pedro over to the other side of the line next to right tackle Averill Draper. That size mismatch helped Massillon blow open some holes, even in the first half, when the Tigers averaged 4.3 yards a carry. "We were running the ball all over them in the first half, but we just had a couple of turnovers," Tiger offensive guard Jeff Myers said. "So we came out and were like, we're going to run the ball in the second half. We got in that unbalanced set. I looked to my right and told (Draper), 'Let's go baby.' We were just driving that guy off the ball and making room." In the third quarter alone, the Tigers - Reiman specifically - ran it 11 times for 55 yards. That compared to just three passes in the quarter, after throwing it 10 times in the second quarter with just five rushing plays. "Part of it's us keep getting these umbrella coverages," Tiger coach Jason Hall said. "We just kept focused at it. If we need to run the ball, we're going to line up unbalanced and run the ball. I thought, personally, after we did it a little bit in the first half that we were a pretty physical team to them.... I thought our kids really controlled the line of scrimmage when we got in that set. "We're the type of team that we're going to stretch the field six-to-eight times a game. It is what it is; it's a Mount Union philosophy. That's what we do, but at the same time, today was about saying, when we want to run the ball, we're going to run the ball." Twinsburg hopes this week they get to add to their growing playoff history once again, this time with a win over the Massillon Tigers. Chris Easterling - Chris.Easterling@IndeOnline.com

2 Updated: Thursday, November 12, 2009 As a football program, Twinsburg's playoff history is relatively limited in scope. The Tigers are in just their sixth playoff appearance in the school's history, and have never been past the second weekend of the postseason in any of the previous five trips. But there's something different about this trip to the playoffs, which continues Saturday night at Fawcett Stadium in a Division I regional semifinal against Massillon. The biggest is the expectations which Twinsburg brings into the playoffs, expectations that come from almost 20 returning starters back from a team which made it to the second round of the postseason a year ago. No longer are the Tigers just happy to be in the playoffs. No, they want more, much more than that our of their excursion into November football. "Our goal since last January was to do everything possible in terms of preparation in order to contend for a regional championship," Twinsburg coach Mark Solis said this week. "That's been our goal since January 4 of this past year. Everything that we've done has been pointed towards winning our region." That starts on the defensive side of the football. Twinsburg is giving up just under nine points a game, and less than 182 yards to the opposition. Eight times in 11 games, the Tigers have held their opponents to single digits. Only once have they given up more than 14 points in a game, that coming in their only loss of the season, a setback to Aurora in Week Three. Last week against Brunswick in a first-round win, the Tigers limited the Blue Devils to just over 60 yards and one first down in the second half. A big reason for the success of that defense has been its experience. Seven of the Tigers' top 10 tacklers from a year ago return, including their top three - linebackers Joe Kerrigan and Devon Sanders, along with safety Darius Washington - who are their top three tacklers this season as well. "As juniors last year, these guys played very well," Solis said. "They held Hoover to 13 points in a secondround playoff game, even though we lost. Nine of those 11 kids are back this year. They are by far, without a doubt, the backbone of our football team. They have defined our success. "They're not the biggest group in the world, but they're very, very well-coached. They play fast; they play physical; they're athletic; and they play together. Because of that, it's the catalyst of our football team.... We go as they go." Twinsburg's defense is a look which defensive coordinator Joe Schiavone, a former Mount Union teammate of Massillon head coach Jason Hall, picked up in talks with current Purple Raider defensive coordinator Vince Kehres. "The 4-2-5, I think Joe would tell you, allows you to be very flexible," Solis said. "It allows you, with the nuances of all these spread offenses and different types of spreads, to be very flexible and line up right against all the different spread offenses that you see. At the same time, if we have to, teams that want to just line it up and run it right at us, we can get into sets like that as well. It really allows us to get a lot of really good athletes on the football field." The Tigers like to get "a lot of really good athletes" on the field on offense as well. And much like their defense, their offense is such that it permits them to do just that. Twinsburg is a spread offense, one similar to what Massillon saw from Mentor in Week Nine. The difference is the athletes which the Tigers are putting in their spread, starting with 960-yard rusher Dion Johnson. Beyond Johnson, Twinsburg quarterback Andrew Collier will look to get the ball to a number of receivers, including Nick Nero, Waquiem Comar, Joe Hiller, Doug Talentino and Brandon Francisco.

3 "We kind of have this ideology that we call 'spread the wealth,'" Solis said. "We want to spread the ball and get the ball into the hands of as many playmakers as we can because that means if we can do that, that means there's a lot of guys they have to account for. The more guys they have to account for, the more chances we think we have to have better success on offense." Solis admits his team is coming off one of its worst offensive performances of the season in last week's win over Brunswick. Twinsburg finished the game with just over 300 yards of offense, but 74 of those came on its go-ahead touchdown pass from Collier to Talentino late in the fourth quarter. "We didn't play that well last week offensively," Solis said. "We were not good. We still managed to put some points on the board. As far as I'm concerned, there's only one way for us to go, offensively, and that's up. We did not play well at all." If there has been an Achilles' heel for Twinsburg, it has been turnovers. The Tigers have given the ball up 16 times this season, including seven in their loss to Aurora and another three in last week's win over Brunswick. "The key for us has been, when we haven't played well on offense, it's been because we haven't done a good job of securing the football," Solis said. "Last week in the first half, we had three interceptions, but we were still able to come out and win the football game. In our only loss to Aurora, we had seven turnovers. "When we secure the football and play our game, we're pretty good offensively. If we don't do that, we're awful, we're just awful. We'll see this week." PD Football Playoff Preview Check out what the Plain Dealer has to say about this weeks playoff match-ups. Click HERE Fresh legs key for Massillon, Twinsburg Chris Easterling: Chris.Easterling@IndeOnline.com Updated: Wednesday, November 11, 2009 Two-platoon football has been the norm this season for the Tigers - be it the Massillon Tigers or the Twinsburg Tigers. The two teams, which will meet Saturday evening at Fawcett Stadium in a Division I regional semifinal, have made it a habit of playing only a few specific players on both sides of the ball. The result has been a pair of football teams that are more fresh as they each enter Week 12 of their seasons. Massillon's list of two-way players is a relatively short one - Bo Grunder at free safety and receiver, Jeff Myers and Brian Robinson, for the most part, on both lines. The same holds true for Twinsburg, which will have Joe Hiller play safety and receiver, while Brandon Bucknell and Matt Fechko will see time on both lines. "We're a Division I high school, and when you play Division I high school football in Ohio, you have to have as many kids going one way as you possibly can," Twinsburg coach Mark Solis said this week. "We have a lot of boys in our school. I've sold that to our younger classes, and it's why our numbers are up. We dress 90 for grades 10 through 12, because our kids know they're going to have a chance to play." But it's not just about getting a chance to get on the field. It's also a chance to get players off the field as well. The payoff, both Solis and Massillon head coach Jason Hall hope, comes over the final 12 to 15 minutes of the game. "We want fresh legs," Solis said. "What we have found, and what we believe, is you keep having kids play

4 with high motors, and they're able to play with high motors when they have fresh legs. Your hope is, by toward the end of the third quarter and into the fourth, those other guys are tired. "When they're tired, you can get off blocks and then your linebackers can go and make plays. Your offensive line can get more of what we call a vertical push." The payoff doesn't just limit itself to during the games, either. It can help make for a more efficient practice, since more time can be devoted to one side or the other since many players aren't having to jump between offensive and defensive drills, especially on days when a practice is specifically oriented to one side of the ball or the other. In Massillon's case, for instance, it's especially beneficial to helping with the timing on offense, with most of its skill players - Grunder the exception - seeing little to no time on defense. "A lot of those guys are still backups on offense or defense," Hall said. "Rob (Partridge), Devin (Smith) and 'O' (Justin Olack) and (Tyler) Allman, a lot of these guys, are just over there working on specific stuff in their game plan on offense. They really aren't doing much stuff on defense." There are challenges inherent in playing only a few players on both sides of the ball. The biggest one is making sure those select two-way players aren't being overused. "It takes a lot of discipline," Hall said. "It takes getting into a rotation ahead of time. You know that every third series, he's getting a break. Bo, no matter where we're at, is our third-down slot. We have little things that dictate when they're going to play and when they're not going to play." What adds to the challenge is when the player isn't just a key performer on both sides of the ball, but also on special teams. Both teams have a situation like that with Grunder and Hiller. Grunder has 27 catches for Massillon, along with over 70 solo tackles, 20 punt returns and 13 kickoff returns. Hiller, meanwhile, is second on Twinsburg's team with 61 rushing attempts, along with almost 50 tackles and seven punt returns. "That comes back to that situation of us having to keep him fresh and using him smart on offense," Hall said, referring to Grunder. "Number one, we definitely need him on defense. Number two, he's our punt returner, kickoff returner. He has a lot of time on the field." In last week's first-round win over Hoover, Hall's use of Grunder paid off handsomely as the senior recorded 15 solo tackles, nine assisted stops, had a key 18-yard punt return to set up Massillon's first touchdown, as well as four catches for 51 yards. All four of Grunder's catches came either on third or fourth down to pick up the first down. It was a far cry from the previous week against McKinley, where Hall admits he didn't do a good job of limiting Grunder's snaps in order to keep him fresh. "I look back two weeks ago, and I kind of misused him early and wore him out in that McKinley game," Hall said. "It kind of took me back to how we need to use Bo Grunder. I thought we did a good job of keeping him fresh for the whole football game. I'm kind of learning as a coach every week." Twinsburg coach has been watching Massillon team for a while In fact, the Twinsburg head football coach has been planning to play Massillon in playoffs for weeks, if not months, now. Solis was amid the many souls outside Byers Field more than a month ago looking to buy a ticket to watch Massillon play St. Ignatius. Solis wasn't there as a fan. He was working. Tigers to Play Fawcett Stadium The Tigers will play their Regional Semi-Final Game at Canton's Fawcett Stadium. Game time is set for

5 7:00pm. Unexpected Hero helps Twinsburg slip past Brunswick Plain Dealer staff, November 06, :38 a.m. Todd Stumpf, Special to The Plain Dealer, November 07, :24 p.m. Line up the guys on Twinsburg's offense who might beat a team on a given night and Doug Talentino's name isn't going to be high on anyone's list. Now, thanks to the little-used tight end, the Tigers are headed to the second round of the Division I playoffs. Talentino's 74-yard catch-and-run touchdown reception with 4:08 left Saturday night completed a comeback victory over Brunswick and lifted Twinsburg (10-1) into a regional semifinal against Massillon next Saturday. "That wouldn't be the guy," said Brunswick coach Rich Nowak, whose injury-riddled team finished 7-4. "There would be a lot of guys standing in front of him. He made a great play on that. Our guys were knocking into each other on that play. It's unbelievable. It's four minutes left in the game, we get a stop, maybe go into overtime." Even Twinsburg coach Mark Solis said he was looking toward overtime before Talentino struck. Sitting in a third-and-11 from their own 26, the Tigers were simply looking to do something safe. Lining up on the left side, Talentino ran a drag route across the field. Depending on who you believe, the 6-3, 210-pound senior was either the first option on the play, or the third. "That play's for me," Talentino said confidently, moments before Solis insisted the tight end was the third choice for quarterback Andrew Collier. Either way, it worked. Thanks in part to two Brunswick linebackers running into each other to help spring Talentino, and the tight end's steamroll of outmatched Brunswick defensive back Jeremy Salmonski. Talentino already had a good head of steam when Salmonski, the last Blue Devil between receiver and goal line, tried to stop him. "I thought he was going to go for my ankles, but he didn't, so I decided to run him over," Talentino said. "I've always wanted to do that." The touchdown was Twinsburg's second of the fourth quarter. A short drive earlier in the period, capped by Joe Hiller's 6-yard run, tied the game at14. The teams were preseason form in a sloppy first half that ended with Brunswick leading, A 28-yard TD pass from Pat Felton to Jared Kaderbek on a fourth-and-14 play gave Brunswick an early 7-0 lead. Twinsburg tied the score on Dion Johnson's 2-yard run midway through the second quarter. Moments later, Felton hit Lorenzo Pace on a 59-yard touchdown to put Brunswick back on top. "We played absolutely awful in the first half," Solis said. "I made a mistake going for it on fourth down. Twice. You get a little deeper in the playoffs, you can't make those kinds of decisions." Twinsburg's defense put the clamps on in the second half, allowing just 62 yards. Though the Tigers struggled offensively, they did enough to tie the game before getting the huge play from the unlikely suspect.

6 "We've got a whole bunch of speed on the outside, so sometimes the slow kid gets overlooked," Talentino said. "That's just what happened." Todd Stumpf is a free-lance writer in Rittman Tigers shut down Stow, clinch playoff berth by Dean Raymond - Correspondent - Twinsburg Bulletin Twinsburg -- High school football coaches love to talk about how any team can beat any other team in any given game. Sometimes, however, a game goes the way its supposed to according to the teams' records. Such was the case Oct. 22 when a one-win Stow-Munroe Falls squad ran into a one-loss Twinsburg squad at Tiger Stadium. Stow-Munroe Falls managed only five first downs the entire game and lost 38-0 Oct. 22 to Twinsburg in a Northeast Ohio Conference River Division game. The victory was enough to ensure the Tigers will be playing postseason football for the second straight year. After leading 14-0 at halftime, Tiger head coach Mark Solis said his team turned on the afterburners after halftime. "We made some adjustments at the half," Solis said. "We changed some plays up and we did a good job executing. [Aaron] Macer made some nice plays for us in the second half." Meanwhile, Bulldogs head coach Marty Tinkler gave a lot of credit to Twinsburg. "They are one of the best teams in the area and they show it week in and week out," Tinkler said. "We had some opportunities early in the game and we fought to the bitter end." Neither team could no much offensively early in the contest before the Tigers (8-1, 4-0) scored a touchdown on the last play of the first quarter. Starting at their own 44-yard line with 3:57 remaining in the first period, Twinsburg reached the Stow 36. On thiird and 6, senior quarterback Andrew Collier passed to senior wide receiver Waquiem Comar down the right sideline for 23 yards to the Bulldog (1-8, 1-3) 13-yard line. On first and Goal at the Stow 2 after a Bulldog penalty, senior running back Joe Hiller raced right up the middle for a touchdown and a 6-0 Tiger lead with no time left on the first quarter clock. Junior placekicker Jacob Russell kicked the extra point and Twinsburg had a 7-0 advantage. Stow reached the Tiger 44 on its next drive but had to punt. A 49-yard pass from Collier to senior wide receiver Nicholas Nero put Twinsburg at the Bulldog 21-yard line. Senior running back Dion Johnson then scampered around left guard to the Stow two-yard line and, on the next play, went off left guard again for a Tiger touchdown. Russell again booted the PAT and Twinsburg led 14-0 with 8:28 left in the second period. Twinsburg had a chance to score again before halftime as the Tigers had the ball third and goal at the Bulldog 2-yard line. However, Collier could gain only one yard up the middle on the next play as time expired in the second quarter. A good kickoff return from Comar put Twinsburg at its 41-yard line to start the third period.

7 A 31-yard pass from Collier to senior tight end Doug Talentino and a 25-yard pass from Collier to Johnson put the Tigers at the Stow 11-yard line. On the next play, Collier connected with Doug Talentino for a touchdown in the middle of the end zone as Twinsburg led 20-0 with 9:11 to go in the third quarter. The extra point was good again from Russell and the Tigers had a 21-0 advantage. Sophomore defensive back Michael Waggoner recovered a fumble for Stow at the Twinsburg 47 with 7:44 remaining in the third period, but on 4th and 4 from the Tiger 29 a pass from junior quarterback Duane Mitchell fell incomplete. Twinsburg then went 71 yards in 10 plays and led 28-0 as Macer raced around left tackle from the Bulldog 5-yard line for another Tiger touchdown. The key plays in the 3:47 drive were a 12-yard run from Hiller on 4th and 2 from the Twinsburg 37 and an 18-yard scamper by Macer to the Stow 17. The PAT was successful by Russell with 0:56 left in the third period. The Bulldogs went four plays and out on their next drive as the Tigers had the ball 1st and 10 at their own 34-yard line early in the fourth quarter. On the first play of their next drive, Macer lined up in the Wildcat formation at quarterback and sped down the right sideline for a 66-yard touchdown run. Russell booted the extra point as Twinsburg led 35-0 with 11:38 remaining in the fourth period. With sophomore Zachary Buckeye at quarterback for the Tigers midway through the fourth quarter, Twinsburg took advantage of a 39-yard run from Macer down the left sideline on 2nd and 15 from the Stow 47 as Russell kicked a 17-yard field goal on 4th and Goal from the Bulldog one-yard line for a 38-0 Tiger lead with 4:48 left in the game. On senior night, Collier ended up 14-of-22 for 245 yards and one touchdown pass for the Tigers with no interceptions. stowsports@recordpub.com Phone: ext Twinsburg Football Playoffs-2009 Twinsburg Football Playoff apparel is available to be purchased. Items include regular T-shirts($10), long sleeve T-Shirts($15) and Russell Athletic Hoodies($25). If you are interested in purchasing any apparel, you can place an order with Coach Solis. All of the apparel is Oxford Gray. Playoff apparel will be ready on Monday, Nov. 2nd. Orders need to placed by Thursday, October 29th. Money for apparel will be due Monday, Nov. 2nd. Checks can made out to "Twinsburg Football". The design seen below is what will be on the front of apparel. Any questions see Coach Solis.

8 Twinsburg routs Stow, 38-0: High school roundup Plain Dealer staff reports, October 23, :05 a.m. The dynamic duo of junior Aaron Macer and senior Andrew Collier left nothing to chance as they paced Twinsburg to a solid 38-0 win against visiting Stow on Thursday night in a Northeast Ohio Conference River Division contest. The Tigers (8-1, 4-0), ranked No. 7 in the Plain Dealer's Top 25, put this one out of reach in the second half as Macer scored on runs of 5 and 66 yards. He finished with 135 yards on five carries. Collier was just as effective as he passed for 245 yards and one score, completing 14 of his 22 attempts. The Tigers also got 76 yards and a touchdown run from senior Dion Johnson. Twinsburg outgained the Bulldogs (1-8, 1-3), 516 yards to 97. Twinsburg slogs to vital win in Hudson by Rob Barrone - Correspondent - Twinsburg Bulletin Hudson -- It didn't take long this football season to figure out that the Northeast Ohio Conference River Division would come down to Twinsburg vs. Hudson. For two straight weeks the Explorers had slopped and sloshed their way to victories in the mud, edging Stow 14-7 and Elyria 10-0 in a pair of mud bowls. Meanwhile, Twinsburg had raced past Lakewood and Cuyahoga Falls 45-7 at the FieldTurf-lined Tiger Stadium. When the two teams met up Oct. 16 in the rain on a muddy Dante Lavelli Field, it took the Tigers some time to adjust. Trailing 7-0 at halftime, Twinsburg found their legs in the second half and rallied for a 14-7 win. The victory puts the Tigers in the drivers seat in the River Division as Twinsburg improved to 7-1, 3-0 in the Division. Hudson fell to 6-2, 2-1 in the division. "If we had a drier track we probably would have thrown the football a little more but what are you going to do," Twinsburg coach Mark Solis said of the wet conditions. "[The Explorers] had to deal with it [too]. Their kids played tough. It's unfortunate that somebody has to lose." Hudson marched 73 yards in 17 plays on the game's opening possession. Hudson ate 9:31 off the clock with a methodical march on plays mostly between the tackles. Piekarski (a game high 81 yards rushing on 16 carries) got the call and the first down on a two-yard gain over left tackle. On third-and-five from the 15-yard line, Hudson quarterback Richie Piekarski finished off the drive. The 6-3, 205 senior raced through the center of the Tigers defense just breaking the plane of the goal line for his tenth touchdown of the season. Mike Ulmer added the extra point and Hudson led 7-0 with just 2:29 left in the first quarter. "That was text book," Hudson coach Tom Narducci said of the drive. "We had a number of critical conversions on that drive. That's exactly what you want to do against this team -- keep the ball away from them." The Tigers tried to answer, but a 10-play possession stall in Hudson territory the Tigers punted and would only have three more plays the rest of the half. The first half had Hudson with 26 plays for 67 yards and the Tigers; 13 touches for 28 yards.

9 "We weren't playing Twinsburg Tiger football in the first half," Solis said. "Ron Wright, [Hudson's] defensive coordinator, had a great game plan. The beautiful thing about football is you get 20 minutes to adjust. We did a great job at halftime of making some adjustments." Those adjustments earned Twinsburg a advantage in total yards after halftime. Twinsburg's first drive of the second half stalled, but punter Frank Dufour's 36-yard boot was downed in the muck at the Hudson 2-yard line. Twinsburg's defense forced a three-and-out and Twinsburg's Waquiem Comar returned the punt to the Hudson 35-yard line. Nick Nero picked up 22 yards to the Explorers' eight-yard line on a fourth-and-five reverse to keep the threat alive. On fourth-and-goal from Explorer 4-yard line, Twinsburg quarterback Andrew Collier rolled right and hit Comar at the two-yard line. The senior fought his way into the end zone. Jake Russell's PAT knotted the score at 7-7 with 36.2 seconds left in the third period. Solis emptied his bag of tricks during the drive. Solis called for a reverse and jump pass from the Wildcat formation, as well as two time outs on the way to the touchdown. Hudson tried to answer as a Piekarski pass to Gabe Adams went for 14 yards on third and 12. However, on the next play, Piekarski plowed ahead for nine yards, but the ball came loose at the end of the play. Tiger linebacker Joe Kerrigan pounced on the loose ball at Explorers' 45-yard line. The Tigers went to work on a game-winning fourth quarter drive as Collier picked up two big third down conversions moving the sticks on sneaks up the middle. On the eighth play of the possession, Twinsburg took the lead for the first time. Johnson took a counter over left tackle and raced through the Hudson defense for a 15-yard touchdown with 6:47 left in the game. The Explorers got to the Tigers' 49 on an 11-yard run by Piekarski on Hudson's ensuing possession. Two plays later Piekarski was flushed out of the pocket and his long pass attempt along the right sideline was picked off by Aaron Macer with 4:42 left. The Tigers converted twice on third and short to run off all but nine seconds and secure the win. The Tigers will host the Bulldogs Oct. 22 at 7 p.m. in a game that will be broadcast live on Fox Sports Ohio. Twinsburg enters Week 9 ranked second in the Division I, Region 2 computer playoff rankings with 19.6 points, trailing only Toledo Whitmer. The top eight teams in each region make the playoffs. stowsports@recordpub.com Phone: ext Playoff History Added THS's playoff history is now part of the website. Click the link on the left. Right now, the scores of the games may be incorrect. If you are an alumni who played on those teams or you do know the actual score of the games, please send an here. Thanks to those alumni who suggested the page be added to the website. The Tigers host Stow this 7:00pm at Tiger Stadium. The game will also be broadcasted on Fox Sports Ohio. Tigers pounce in second half By Jim Isabella - special to the Beacon Journal Published on Saturday, Oct 17, 2009

10 HUDSON : Mark Solis knew this was a special game. So the Twinsburg coach used all of his special plays in a special situation. The resulting late third-quarter touchdown coupled with a key Hudson turnover in the fourth quarter led the Tigers to a 14-7 win over the Explorers in a game both teams considered to be the championship game of the River Division of the Northeast Ohio Conference at Dante Lavelli Field. The Tigers are 7-1 overall and 3-0 in the division, and the Explorers fall to 6-2 and 2-1 in the division. The game also had huge playoffs implications in Division I, Region 2, as Twinsburg came in at No. 4 and Hudson was eighth. The top eight teams in each region qualify for the postseason. Trailing 7-0 at halftime, Solis felt the urgency to use everything to score when the opportunity came in the third quarter after an exchange of punts gave Twinsburg the ball at the Hudson 35-yard line. It took eight plays, a little chicanery and the final two timeouts for Twinsburg to tie the game at 7-7 with 36 seconds left in the third quarter. The touchdown came on a rollout pass by Tigers quarterback Andrew Collier to Waquiem Comar from four yards out on a fourth-and-goal. ''I did not want to use our timeouts, but we had to score at that point. We used all of our special plays on our play sheet we had for this game,'' Solis said. ''Their defensive coordinator, Ron Wright, had a great game plan. They knew our tenacities and formations.'' One of the key plays was a double reverse handoff to Nick Nero that picked up 22 yards on fourth-andfive to set up a first-and-goal at the Hudson 8. With the score tied 7-7, the Tigers got the biggest break of the night as Twinsburg linebacker Joe Kerrigan recovered a fumble by Hudson quarterback Richie Piekarski at the Hudson 45 with 10:53 remaining in regulation. Primarily using counter plays to the left side of the offensive line and two quarterback sneaks, the Tigers took eight plays to find the end zone on Dion Johnson's 15 yards, and Jacob Russell's extra-point kick put Twinsburg on top for the first time, 14-7, with 6:47 left in the fourth quarter. Piekarski, who was virtually all the offense Hudson could muster on the muddy track, tried to bring his team back. When the senior was flushed out of the pocket, he tried to complete a jump ball pass to his best receiver, Gabe Adams, but Twinsburg defensive back Aaron Macer came up with the interception at the Twinsburg 30 with 4:42 left in the game. The Tigers' running game picked up two first downs, one on an offside penalty in short yardage by Hudson, and killed all but nine seconds of the clock. ''The key for us was getting that fumble and then drawing them offside. We had a play called if they didn't bite on it, but we felt we could draw them offside,'' Solis said. Hudson had gone into halftime having accomplished its major goal - keeping the explosive Twinsburg offense off the field. The Explorers did it with a text-book opening drive that covered 73 yards on 17 carries and taking 12:31 off the clock. It was capped with the lone Explorer touchdown, a 15-yard run by Piekarski. At the half, Hudson had 67 yards in offense and Twinsburg, just 28. ''We did not exactly yell at our players, but they weren't playing Tiger football,'' Solis said. That included trick plays and better execution.

11 Twinsburg holds off Hudson, tightens grip on title, playoffs Tim Rogers, The Plain Dealer, October 17, :25 a.m. It was Think Pink Night at Hudson on Friday. Twinsburg was thinking championship. The Tigers came up with two second-half turnovers and went on to defeat host Hudson, 14-7, in a game that will probably give the Tigers the Northeast Ohio River Division championship and a home game in the first round of the playoffs. Twinsburg (7-1, 3-0) overcame a sloppy first half on a sloppy night to spoil Hudson's (6-2, 2-1) upset bid. "We just didn't play Twinsburg Tiger football in the first half," said head coach Mark Solis, whose team will gain ground in the Division I, Region 2 computer standings. "We made some uncharacteristic mistakes that we haven't been making. The beautiful thing about football is you get 20 minutes [at halftime] to adjust and we made some adjustments. And, we executed." opened the game with a picture-perfect drive, going 73 yards in 17 plays behind quarterback Richie Piekarski. The Explorers kept the ball for almost 10 minutes before the talented Piekarski finished off the drive by dashing the final 15 yards and Mike Ulmer added the extra point. That was about it for the Explorers' offense, which ran just 23 plays over the final three quarters. "On a night like this you kind of hoped you would maybe be able to hang on to a 7-0 lead," said Hudson coach Tom Narducci, who wore a pink hat on Breast Cancer Awareness Night at Lavelli Stadium. "But we couldn't get the job done." Twinsburg dominated field position for the entire second half, tying the game on a 5-yard pass from Andrew Collier to Waquiem Comar on a fourth-and-goal play and the subsequent point-after by Jake Russell. "We felt we had to get some points out of that possession," said Solis, who used back-to-back timeouts to get things straight. Senior Nick Nero made two big plays in the drive, hauling in a 10-yard pass and then picking up a first down with a 22-yard gain on a reverse on another fourth-down play. The biggest game of the play came on Hudson's next possession. Piekarski completed a 15-yard pass to Gabe Adams to get some momentum going and picked up another first down with a nine-yard gain. He lost the ball as he was being tackled, however, and it was recovered by senior Joe Kerrigan at the Hudson 45. The Tigers did not waste the turnover. Pounding away at the Hudson line with Dion Johnson and Joe Hiller, the Tigers scored in eight plays, with Johnson going the final 15. The defense then took over as junior Aaron Macer intercepted a long pass with 4:42 left and held onto the ball until just nine seconds remained. Neither team was able to move the ball through the air, so they stuck to the ground. Piekarski rushed for 81 yards on 16 carries, while completing two of just seven passes. Twinsburg slogs to vital win in Hudson by Rob Barrone Correspondent Twinsburg Bulletin Hudson -- It didn't take long this football season to figure out that the Northeast Ohio Conference River Division would come down to Twinsburg vs. Hudson.

12 For two straight weeks the Explorers had slopped and sloshed their way to victories in the mud, edging Stow 14-7 and Elyria 10-0 in a pair of mud bowls. Meanwhile, Twinsburg had raced past Lakewood and Cuyahoga Falls 45-7 at the FieldTurf-lined Tiger Stadium. When the two teams met up Oct. 16 in the rain on a muddy Dante Lavelli Field, it took the Tigers some time to adjust. Trailing 7-0 at halftime, Twinsburg found their legs in the second half and rallied for a 14-7 win. The victory puts the Tigers in the drivers seat in the River Division as Twinsburg improved to 7-1, 3-0 in the Division. Hudson fell to 6-2, 2-1 in the division. "If we had a drier track we probably would have thrown the football a little more but what are you going to do," Twinsburg coach Mark Solis said of the wet conditions. "[The Explorers] had to deal with it [too]. Their kids played tough. It's unfortunate that somebody has to lose." Hudson marched 73 yards in 17 plays on the game's opening possession. Hudson ate 9:31 off the clock with a methodical march on plays mostly between the tackles. Piekarski (a game high 81 yards rushing on 16 carries) got the call and the first down on a two-yard gain over left tackle. On third-and-five from the 15-yard line, Hudson quarterback Richie Piekarski finished off the drive. The 6-3, 205 senior raced through the center of the Tigers defense just breaking the plane of the goal line for his tenth touchdown of the season. Mike Ulmer added the extra point and Hudson led 7-0 with just 2:29 left in the first quarter. "That was text book," Hudson coach Tom Narducci said of the drive. "We had a number of critical conversions on that drive. That's exactly what you want to do against this team -- keep the ball away from them." The Tigers tried to answer, but a 10-play possession stall in Hudson territory the Tigers punted and would only have three more plays the rest of the half. The first half had Hudson with 26 plays for 67 yards and the Tigers; 13 touches for 28 yards. "We weren't playing Twinsburg Tiger football in the first half," Solis said. "Ron Wright, [Hudson's] defensive coordinator, had a great game plan. The beautiful thing about football is you get 20 minutes to adjust. We did a great job at halftime of making some adjustments." Those adjustments earned Twinsburg a advantage in total yards after halftime. Twinsburg's first drive of the second half stalled, but punter Frank Dufour's 36-yard boot was downed in the muck at the Hudson 2-yard line. Twinsburg's defense forced a three-and-out and Twinsburg's Waquiem Comar returned the punt to the Hudson 35-yard line. Nick Nero picked up 22 yards to the Explorers' eight-yard line on a fourth-and-five reverse to keep the threat alive. On fourth-and-goal from Explorer 4-yard line, Twinsburg quarterback Andrew Collier rolled right and hit Comar at the two-yard line. The senior fought his way into the end zone. Jake Russell's PAT knotted the score at 7-7 with 36.2 seconds left in the third period.

13 Solis emptied his bag of tricks during the drive. Solis called for a reverse and jump pass from the Wildcat formation, as well as two time outs on the way to the touchdown. Hudson tried to answer as a Piekarski pass to Gabe Adams went for 14 yards on third and 12. However, on the next play, Piekarski plowed ahead for nine yards, but the ball came loose at the end of the play. Tiger linebacker Joe Kerrigan pounced on the loose ball at Explorers' 45-yard line. The Tigers went to work on a game-winning fourth quarter drive as Collier picked up two big third down conversions moving the sticks on sneaks up the middle. On the eighth play of the possession, Twinsburg took the lead for the first time. Johnson took a counter over left tackle and raced through the Hudson defense for a 15-yard touchdown with 6:47 left in the game. The Explorers got to the Tigers' 49 on an 11-yard run by Piekarski on Hudson's ensuing possession. Two plays later Piekarski was flushed out of the pocket and his long pass attempt along the right sideline was picked off by Aaron Macer with 4:42 left. The Tigers converted twice on third and short to run off all but nine seconds and secure the win. The Tigers will host the Bulldogs Oct. 22 at 7 p.m. in a game that will be broadcast live on Fox Sports Ohio. Twinsburg enters Week 9 ranked second in the Division I, Region 2 computer playoff rankings with 19.6 points, trailing only Toledo Whitmer. The top eight teams in each region make the playoffs. stowsports@recordpub.com Phone: ext Playoff History Added THS's playoff history is now part of the website. Click the link on the left. Right now, the scores of the games may be incorrect. If you are an alumni who played on those teams or you do know the actual score of the games, please send an here. Thanks to those alumni who suggested the page be added to the website. The Tigers host Stow this 7:00pm at Tiger Stadium. The game will also be broadcasted on Fox Sports Ohio. Tigers pounce in second half By Jim Isabella - special to the Beacon Journal Published on Saturday, Oct 17, 2009 HUDSON : Mark Solis knew this was a special game. So the Twinsburg coach used all of his special plays in a special situation. The resulting late third-quarter touchdown coupled with a key Hudson turnover in the fourth quarter led the Tigers to a 14-7 win over the Explorers in a game both teams considered to be the championship game of the River Division of the Northeast Ohio Conference at Dante Lavelli Field.

14 The Tigers are 7-1 overall and 3-0 in the division, and the Explorers fall to 6-2 and 2-1 in the division. The game also had huge playoffs implications in Division I, Region 2, as Twinsburg came in at No. 4 and Hudson was eighth. The top eight teams in each region qualify for the postseason. Trailing 7-0 at halftime, Solis felt the urgency to use everything to score when the opportunity came in the third quarter after an exchange of punts gave Twinsburg the ball at the Hudson 35-yard line. It took eight plays, a little chicanery and the final two timeouts for Twinsburg to tie the game at 7-7 with 36 seconds left in the third quarter. The touchdown came on a rollout pass by Tigers quarterback Andrew Collier to Waquiem Comar from four yards out on a fourth-and-goal. ''I did not want to use our timeouts, but we had to score at that point. We used all of our special plays on our play sheet we had for this game,'' Solis said. ''Their defensive coordinator, Ron Wright, had a great game plan. They knew our tenacities and formations.'' One of the key plays was a double reverse handoff to Nick Nero that picked up 22 yards on fourth-andfive to set up a first-and-goal at the Hudson 8. With the score tied 7-7, the Tigers got the biggest break of the night as Twinsburg linebacker Joe Kerrigan recovered a fumble by Hudson quarterback Richie Piekarski at the Hudson 45 with 10:53 remaining in regulation. Primarily using counter plays to the left side of the offensive line and two quarterback sneaks, the Tigers took eight plays to find the end zone on Dion Johnson's 15 yards, and Jacob Russell's extra-point kick put Twinsburg on top for the first time, 14-7, with 6:47 left in the fourth quarter. Piekarski, who was virtually all the offense Hudson could muster on the muddy track, tried to bring his team back. When the senior was flushed out of the pocket, he tried to complete a jump ball pass to his best receiver, Gabe Adams, but Twinsburg defensive back Aaron Macer came up with the interception at the Twinsburg 30 with 4:42 left in the game. The Tigers' running game picked up two first downs, one on an offside penalty in short yardage by Hudson, and killed all but nine seconds of the clock. ''The key for us was getting that fumble and then drawing them offside. We had a play called if they didn't bite on it, but we felt we could draw them offside,'' Solis said. Hudson had gone into halftime having accomplished its major goal - keeping the explosive Twinsburg offense off the field. The Explorers did it with a text-book opening drive that covered 73 yards on 17 carries and taking 12:31 off the clock. It was capped with the lone Explorer touchdown, a 15-yard run by Piekarski. At the half, Hudson had 67 yards in offense and Twinsburg, just 28. ''We did not exactly yell at our players, but they weren't playing Tiger football,'' Solis said. That included trick plays and better execution. Twinsburg holds off Hudson, tightens grip on title, playoffs Tim Rogers, The Plain Dealer, October 17, :25 a.m. It was Think Pink Night at Hudson on Friday. Twinsburg was thinking championship.

15 The Tigers came up with two second-half turnovers and went on to defeat host Hudson, 14-7, in a game that will probably give the Tigers the Northeast Ohio River Division championship and a home game in the first round of the playoffs. Twinsburg (7-1, 3-0) overcame a sloppy first half on a sloppy night to spoil Hudson's (6-2, 2-1) upset bid. "We just didn't play Twinsburg Tiger football in the first half," said head coach Mark Solis, whose team will gain ground in the Division I, Region 2 computer standings. "We made some uncharacteristic mistakes that we haven't been making. The beautiful thing about football is you get 20 minutes [at halftime] to adjust and we made some adjustments. And, we executed." Hudson opened the game with a picture-perfect drive, going 73 yards in 17 plays behind quarterback Richie Piekarski. The Explorers kept the ball for almost 10 minutes before the talented Piekarski finished off the drive by dashing the final 15 yards and Mike Ulmer added the extra point. That was about it for the Explorers' offense, which ran just 23 plays over the final three quarters. "On a night like this you kind of hoped you would maybe be able to hang on to a 7-0 lead," said Hudson coach Tom Narducci, who wore a pink hat on Breast Cancer Awareness Night at Lavelli Stadium. "But we couldn't get the job done." Twinsburg dominated field position for the entire second half, tying the game on a 5-yard pass from Andrew Collier to Waquiem Comar on a fourth-and-goal play and the subsequent point-after by Jake Russell. "We felt we had to get some points out of that possession," said Solis, who used back-to-back timeouts to get things straight. Senior Nick Nero made two big plays in the drive, hauling in a 10-yard pass and then picking up a first down with a 22-yard gain on a reverse on another fourth-down play. The biggest game of the play came on Hudson's next possession. Piekarski completed a 15-yard pass to Gabe Adams to get some momentum going and picked up another first down with a nine-yard gain. He lost the ball as he was being tackled, however, and it was recovered by senior Joe Kerrigan at the Hudson 45. The Tigers did not waste the turnover. Pounding away at the Hudson line with Dion Johnson and Joe Hiller, the Tigers scored in eight plays, with Johnson going the final 15. The defense then took over as junior Aaron Macer intercepted a long pass with 4:42 left and held onto the ball until just nine seconds remained. Neither team was able to move the ball through the air, so they stuck to the ground. Piekarski rushed for 81 yards on 16 carries, while completing two of just seven passes. Twinsburg at Hudson preview Tim Rogers, The Plain Dealer, October 15, :13 p.m. Kickoff : Northeast Ohio Conference River Division game, 7:30 p.m., Dante Lavelli Stadium, N. Hayden Parkway, Hudson. Call Records: Both teams are 6-1, 2-0. What to watch: Huge game in Division I, Region 2, with the winner clinching a playoff spot and perhaps a first-round home game. Twinsburg's depth along the defensive line has been beneficial as coach Mark Solis rotates nine players in the four down spots, keeping fresh legs in the game. One of Hudson's

16 strengths is its offensive line, which has enabled quarterback Richie Piekarski to make plays. After undergoing minor surgery in the preseason, Twinsburg's Dion Johnson has put together a stellar season, with 613 yards on the ground and 86 in pass receptions. Versatile Joe Hiller and two-way lineman Matt Fechko also have performed well. Twinsburg, fourth in the computer standings, snapped an eight-game losing streak to the Explorers with an 18-0 victory last year. Hudson, standing eighth in the computer, needs players such as receivers Gabe Adams and Jake Brandy to take the heat off Piekarski. PD pick: Hudson. Twinsburg's offense runs all over Falls by Jim Isabella - Correspondent - Twinsburg Bulletin If the Cuyahoga Falls football team wanted to see how to become a good football program after years of futility, all it had to do is look across the line of scrimmage Oct. 9. The Black Tigers got to play a team two years ago that was not only losing, but was trying to come out of disarray. In the 2007 season, first-year coach Mark Solis arrived at Twinsburg from rebuilding a down Elyria program and had to weather a 3-7 season while changing the culture of losing. As anyone who watched Twinsburg last season knows, the spread offense was not just a gimmick. It has become efficient and explosive -- coming at you with speed, power and from so many different angles and places of attack. By halftime, the point was made: If you aren't at your very best, the Tigers will dismantle a quickly as the shopping complex on State Street in the Falls. Twinsburg had a 28-0 after two quarters and cruised to an easy 45-7 win over the Black Tigers at Twinsburg Tiger Stadium. The win gives Twinsburg an overall mark of 6-1 and 2-0 in the River Division of the Northeast Ohio Conference, while Cuyahoga Falls is 2-5 and 1-1. Cuyahoga Falls coach Mike Miller said the Tigers rebuilding project simply involved Solis bringing in needed discipline. "Twinsburg had always had athletes. We knew they were the more talented team, so for us to beat them we would have to play our best game," Miller said. "As a coach, you have to recognize when a talented player beats you, fine. What I won't put up with are players not carrying out execution of a play, not finishing it." The Tigers dominated in all but one statistical category. Twinsburg ran for 316 on 36 attempts, an average of 8.7 per carry, as well a racking up 14 first down to just four for Cuyahoga Falls. The only comparable stats were in the passing game, as Falls hit 8-of-15 passes for 96 yards, while Twinsburg was 4-of-13 for 58 yards. "We played really well, especially our special teams," Solis said. The Tigers got off to a fast start because of special teams. Twinsburg's Nick Nero ran a punt back 53 yards with 9:13 left in the first quarter and Jacob Russell's extra point kick gave the Tigers a 7-0 lead.

17 With just 11 seconds remaining in the first quarter, Tiger quarterback Andrew Collier finished the offense's first scoring drive when he hit Waquiem Comar with a 9-yard touchdown pass for a 14-0 lead. It was Collier's ninth touchdown pass of the season. The Tigers showed no let up in the second quarter. Twinsburg made it 21-0 as Dion Johnson scored from 17 yards out with 8:32 left in the half. It was the senior running back's ninth touchdown to go with 619 yards and a 7.4 yards per carry average. Collier finished up the scoring for the half with a 2-yard effort with 4:28 left in the half for a 28-0 lead going into the locker room. "The guys understand what they have to do to. We actually played well offensively despite the fact it just rained all night," Solis said. Russell hit a chip shot 24-yard field goal for a 31-0 lead early in the third quarter. Just before the third quarter ended, Falls finally got on the scoreboard. Jordan Sweat came out of the backfield to catch a 15-yard pass from Black Tiger quarterback Dylon Leymon and Warren's PAT made it "Jordan has been very good for us as a runner and a linebacker," Miller said. "Dennis Neveadomi (6-foot, 305 pounds) has played well on the defensive line. Twinsburg just kept running away from him." Ahead for Twinsburg is likely the championship game for the River Division championship, as the Tigers play Hudson at Dante Lavelli Field Oct. 16. The Explorers, 5-1 and 2-0, have won close games the past two weeks in poor playing conditions, defeating at Stow, 14-10, and at Elyria, "We have learned a lot from the loss to Aurora. Our guys knew would likely decide the division, but we have learned not too overlook an opponent and play every play," Solis said. Falls is home this weekend against Lakewood, which has lost six straight after winning its opener. On Oct. 23, the Black Tigers finish their home schedule at Clifford Stadium against Hudson. Stowsports@recordpub.com Phone: ext Big plays lead Tigers to big win vs. Rangers by Steve Batko - Correspondent - Twinsburg Bulletin Big-play football. Twinsburg coach Mark Solis loves it. Three touchdowns by senior running back Dion Johnson along with two touchdown runs by senior Joe Hiller and Aaron Macer's two big touchdowns, including a 106-yard interception return, vaulted Twinsburg past visiting Lakewood in a NOC River Division opener Oct. 2. Twinsburg is now 5-1 overall and 1-0 in the NOC River as the Tigers averaged nearly 10.0 yards a rushing attempt and totaled almost 400 yards. Macer's explosive return in the fourth stanza is most likely a school record. Solis also liked the five turnovers his defense caused.