43
Many Mooney memories made at Fawcett Stadium
By Ryan Buck
youngstown
Their 26 Ohio high school football playoff appearances have allowed them to travel across the state, to numerous venues of both size and stature.
Perhaps no other road stadium, however, has become as familiar to the Cardinal Mooney Cardinals as Fawcett Stadium at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton. Friday, the Cardinals will return to their “home away from home” in a Division IV state semifinal clash with Steubenville.
The 75 year-old, 23,000-seat facility, home of the preseason NFL Hall of Fame Game, holds a special place in the heart of Mooney coach P.J. Fecko.
“Fawcett’s a phenomenal facility,” said Fecko, Mooney’s head coach of 14 years. “The stadium itself holds a tremendous amount of history obviously at the local level and the national level with the Hall of Fame and the Hall of Fame Game being there each and every summer.
“It’s a really neat place for young people to play and gain some memories.”
Other than the Canton City schools, Mooney seems to frequent Fawcett more than any other high school squad in Ohio, from scrimmages to state title games.
“We have, over the years, some fond memories of that stadium,” said Fecko, who played at Mooney from 1989-92. “Dating back as far as I can remember, in the years as a player, we played Canton McKinley.
“We had played Canton McKinley through the early ’90s and then again in 2011. We played in two Kirk Herbstreit [Ohio vs. The U.S.A.] high school classics where we played some out-of-state teams and had success there.”
Fawcett’s size and intimacy provide the ideal environment for the high school stage.
“Physically, it’s an outstanding stadium,” Fecko said. “You take the lighting and the field conditions, it’s raised to pro standards. It’s really a great place to play.”
Mooney has clinched two of its eight state championships there. In 2004, the Cardinals defeated Versailles. In 2011, Mooney beat Springfield Shawnee for its most recent title.
In 2005, the Cardinals played for another there, falling to Coldwater.
In the last decade, a Mooney trip to Canton has become synonymous with one opponent — a team the Cardinals will see again Friday night.
Steubenville (9-4) enters the game having lost four of the last five playoff meetings with its nemesis to the north.
From 2007-11, the two state powers met every year in the postseason with each meeting coming at the natural neutral site of Fawcett.
The Cardinals ousted the Big Red from the playoffs on each occasion, except for 2008.
In 2009 the Cardinals won a Division III state semifinal decisively, 45-7, on their way to a state championship. In 2011, a last-second field goal gave them a dramatic 24-22 win.
Friday brings a new year, and a completely clean slate.
“You start to see some familiar faces the farther you go in the playoffs,” Fecko said. “This year’s no different.
“It’s exciting for the players, the communities and its exciting for Ohio high school football.”
The Cardinals (9-4) have already seen enough film of the Big Red to wear out a DVD player, but this year’s team is not taking them lightly.
“Steubenville’s always been a good team and always been in the playoffs every other year,” said Mooney wide receiver-safety Denver Martin. “They don’t have too many big names, but they’re solid all-around.”
Of course, a date at Fawcett makes it all the more special.
“We haven’t played there since ’11,” said Martin, matter-of-factly. “Last time we were there, it was the state championship.”
A win Friday could send them there a for a second consecutive week.