Dan Hiner: Valley has NFL coaches

For the most part, football across the country has come to an end. Only the lucky few NFL teams to make the playoffs are still playing.

But that doesn’t mean the Youngstown-football connection is done for the year.

Three former area high school players — Frank Ross, Tom Manning and Pat Meyer — are walking the sidelines this weekend with a trip to the AFC Championship on the line.

Ross, a Canfield graduate, became a special teams assistant for the Indianapolis Colts this season. He’s joined by Manning, a former Ursuline offensive tackle who was named the Colts tight ends coach.

“You look at the pro level and collegiate level, the number of northeast Ohio guys that dot coaching staffs across the country is pretty impressive,” Canfield head coach Mike Pavlansky said. “To have two on the same staff has got to be neat for those guys because they can sit around the office, when they get a free moment, and talk about the Mahoning Valley.”

As a quarterback for Canfield, Ross helped the Cardinals reach the Division II state title in 2005.

Ross was an all-conference receiver with John Carroll before joining the team as a coach for the 2013 and 2014 seasons. Ross spent five seasons as a scout for the New England Patriots prior to joining the Colts.

Manning won the Division V state title with the Irish before winning two NCAA Division III titles with Mount Union. This season, Manning has resurrected the career of former first-round pick Eric Ebron.

The former Detroit Lions tight end registered career highs in catches (66), receiving yards (750) and touchdown catches (13).

Meyer was a starting lineman for Girard before becoming an offensive tackle for Colorado State. He has coached the Los Angeles Chargers offensive line, helping turn around one of the worst O-lines in the league.

The Chargers allowed a league-low 17 sacks in Meyer’s first season in 2017. This season, Los Angeles ranked 11th with 34 sacks allowed.

Girard athletic director Nick Cochran played with Meyer. He said the Chargers assistant was competitive, and coaching was a logical step.

“He was always the guy who tried to play basketball. He tried wrestling. He tried everything,” Cochran said. “I think he knew his niche and wanted to do something around athletics.”

All three coaches have maintained their connection to the area.

Ross still works with the Canfield football team when time allows, and Manning was scheduled to help at Ursuline’s youth football camp in July.

Meyer sent the Girard football team a video message during the Indians’ send-off prior to their Division IV state title game in December.

“It’s always great to have somebody from the area do something above and beyond,” Cochran said. “The greatest thing is he’s a Girard graduate. That makes it even more special.”

The Colts travel to Kansas City to play the top-seeded Chiefs today. Kickoff is scheduled for 4:35 p.m. The Chargers will play the defending AFC champion Patriots in Foxborough, Mass., on Sunday. Kickoff is 1:05 p.m.

Dan Hiner is a sports writer for The Vindicator. Email him at dhiner@vindy.com