Photo by: Nick Mays

Special to the Vindicator

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Ursuline's Akise Teague flies past Lima's Rufus Johnson Saturday night in Ashland.

11.27.2010 Ursuline Football

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Ursuline Vs. Coldwater

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By Jon Moffett

jmoffett@vindy.com

YOUNGSTOWN

Dan Reardon is considered by many as one of the best coaches in the Mahoning Valley. But his opponent in this weekend’s state title game also knows a thing or two about walking on the path of greatness.

Chip Otten, the head coach of the Coldwater High team that will play Ursuline in the Division V state championship game Saturday, was put in his position by chance. He replaces legendary Cavaliers coach John Reed, who passed away in May after a long battle with esophageal cancer. He was 64.

“John’s name comes up pretty much on a weekly basis,” Otten said in a conference call with media Monday.

Otten said the team has a special decal on its helmets to honor Reed, who won 168 games, six league titles and two state championships over 15 years with the school. But Reed has left his mark on more than just the gear.

Otten said the Cavaliers use many of Reed’s principals and philosophies. Otten adds his own touch, but the longtime assistant under Reed still applies many of his mentor’s practices.

“There certainly is a lot of a John with us still,” Otten said. “With our continuity of our some staff, that philosophy hasn’t really changed.”

Reardon said Coldwater, which the Irish defeated in last year’s state final, brings a lot of different things to the table. Of offense, several different formations give the defense plenty of looks and tries to stretch them out.

“They present you with so many challenges because they do a good job of making you adjust to different formations,” he said. “They are well-coached and their staff is intact. You see a lot of similarities [from last year to this year].”

The most dangerous offensive player for the Cavaliers (11-3) is wide receiver Reese Klenke. Klenke, a 6-foot-4, 195-pound senior, is Coldwater’s version of Ursuline’s Akise Teague. Klenke has 96 catches for 1,600 yards and 20 touchdowns, Otten said.

“When you mix it up, and Coach Reardon does it too, we’ve tried to get our best players in position to make plays,” Otten said.

Which is important, since the Cavaliers don’t have a lot of options.

“We do not have a lot of depth, to be honest with you,” Otten said. “We lost 22 seniors last year and we play about five sophomores. We don’t rotate much because of the guys we have.”

Defensively, the Irish and the Cavaliers are somewhat similar. Both use athleticism and speed over size and brute strength. Both Reardon and Otten admitted their linebackers may play safety in other schemes.

Otten said he hopes the Irish defense is on the field a lot. That would mean the vaunted Ursuline offense is on the sidelines watching.

“We’ll mix it up a bunch and really try to run the ball and make tackles,” Otten said. “We just need to do what we do. And if that’s good enough, great. But it’s going to be a difficult challenge for us.”

Otten hopes for a different result than last year. But he also knows he and his team are fortunate to even be in the playoffs, let alone the title game.

The Cavaliers began the season at 1-2. And he knows none of the players are taking this game for granted.

“We’re really excited to be where we are,” he said. “At 1-2, we were just hoping to win 5 or 6 games at that point ... We had a couple of injuries early with some of our skilled seniors guys, but the guys stayed the course.”