By Jon Moffett

jmoffett@vindy.com

Canton

Larry Kempe shrugged off the idea that he should be wearing something more suitable for winter weather than his khaki shorts.

Not many people noticed. But then again, he and the Ursuline High defense have flown under the radar for most of the year.

The Fighting Irish, led by a high-octane offense and stout defense, captured their third straight Division V state championship with a 51-21 victory over Coldwater at Fawcett Stadium on Saturday. They also notched their second undefeated season in three years.

While the running of senior tailback Akise Teague captured the attention of the thousands in attendance, the defense captured the title.

“Points are flashy, but defense wins championships,” the defensive coordinator said with a smile. “Coach [Dan] Reardon allows us to play great defense. [Assistant coaches] Brad Turnbull, Lee Dejacimo and Kevin Cylar do a great job on Sundays doing preparation and getting ready.”

The Fighting Irish (15-0) used their defense to shut down one of the better offenses they’d played this year. And the players knew it was a tough task from the start.

“That offense is dynamic,” said senior linebacker Jordan Markota. “That spread offense is tough to guard. Their receivers, especially [senior Reese] Klenke, make every catch you think they can’t make.”

The Cavaliers (11-4) racked up 323 yards of offense, but most of it came in garbage time of the second half when the game was out of reach. Coldwater had 109 yards in the first half, including eight yards on nine carries, and trailed 44-7 at the break.

“Me and [Jordan] Markota kept switching back and forth on the outside to put pressure on their quarterback,” said senior linebacker and Div. V defensive player of the year Keil’n Thurston. “The linemen were getting confused and didn’t know really who to guard.”

The Fighting Irish had just one sack. But they forced quarterback Ethan Bettinger to throw 19 incomplete passes out of 37 attempts.

Ursuline also only forced one turnover, a fumble near Coldwater’s end zone.

Junior linebacker Jesse Curry popped the ball out of Aaron Rammel’s hands, and teammate Michael Zappa fell on it.

“I was yelling at everyone to get off of me because I had the ball,” Zappa said. “I was just screaming at the top of my lungs, ‘Get off me, I have the ball!’ That’s it.”

Curry credited the coaching staff and said the game plan for the win. But forcing the fumble was fun, too.

“I was so happy, man,” he said. “I thought he broke my tackle and was just upset that I missed a tackle. But then I saw the ball on the ground and I knew I did a good job.”

Kempe got emotional when talking about coaching the 10 seniors, including his son, Paul, who quarterbacked the Fighting Irish to all three titles and played safety.

Oh, and about those shorts?

He’s just trying to fit in.

“Look at the players,’ he said. “They’re basically in shorts with those football pants. I can hack it for three hours.”

Zappa wasn’t buying it.

“He’s superstitious,” Zappa joked. “But he’s unconventional; he’s old school. Coach Kempe does whatever he wants and we don’t question him.”