McDaniels impressed with Mooney's start

Like the Cardinals, Warren Harding is 3-0 and ranked No. 2 in the state poll.
By BRIAN RICHESSON
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
Coach Thom McDaniels has high standards for his Warren Harding High football team.
Sometimes, a win is masked by mistakes and less than satisfactory performances. In McDaniels' mind, that was the case last week in the Raiders' victory over Akron Buchtel.
Harding's special teams unit, the Raiders' strength, wasn't dominating enough, McDaniels said, and the offense was sloppy and inconsistent.
"Film doesn't lie," he said. "We didn't fabricate our pitiful performance; it's on tape for anyone to see."
Redeeming themselves
McDaniels wonders how the Raiders will respond Saturday night when they travel to Stambaugh Stadium to face Cardinal Mooney in the Steel Valley Conference opener.
"We can have one of two reactions," McDaniels said. "We can pout like second graders because we played badly or we can be angry about our performance and go do something about it.
"I encouraged them to be angry," he added, "and correct what's wrong."
Saturday's match-up is enticing for a couple reasons. Harding and Mooney enter the game undefeated after three weeks and are ranked second in the state poll in Divisions I and IV, respectively.
"It's the best Mooney team I've seen since I've been here," said McDaniels, the fourth-year Harding coach. "They play with a unity and confidence that I haven't seen before, and they appear to have clear goals they fully expect to accomplish."
Off and running
P.J. Fecko, the Cardinals' fourth-year coach, cites defense and special teams for his team's fast start.
"Going in, we felt our defense had the potential to be pretty good, and that was something we were going to lean on," he said. "We've been progressing well, and we have to continue to get better."
McDaniels is an offensive-minded coach, so he spends time studying opposing defenses.
He's impressed by Mooney senior linebackers Bob McCabe and Anthony Childs, senior safeties Ron Stoops and Frank Cassese and senior tackle Christian Lively.
Add senior defensive end David Zidian to that group, and you have the foundation of a defense that has surrendered just 16 points this season.
"[McCabe and Childs] play linebacker the way I want our guys to play linebacker," McDaniels said. "[Stoops and Cassese] play like kids who are confident in what they're doing."
Defense challenged
It is that defense that Mooney will need to utilize against the explosive Raiders.
"Their athleticism and their speed are outstanding," Fecko said. "We're going to have to be sound and not open any creases because their athleticism will make you pay."
Harding has won the last three meetings between the schools by a combined score of 103-6. Both coaches stress those past games mean nothing Saturday night.
"I like the fact we're going away and playing a 3-0 football team that feels real good about themselves right now," McDaniels said. "That's good for us."
richesson@vindy.com