Links

Scott Ferrell Photography – Orrville Sports Pictures
http://scottferrellphotography.zenfolio.com

Wooster Division 3 District – Standings and Brackets
http://ohiobasketball.net/Wooster

Davey1 - Ohio High School Standings and Results. Focuses on North Central and Northwest Ohio teams.
Here's the page for the OCC.

Drew Pastuer’s Fantastic 50 – Ohio High School Football Rankings done by a College of Wooster professor
http://www.fantastic50.net/

Joe Eitel’s Computer Standings – Projected Computer Points Standings for All 24 regions
http://www.joeeitel.com

Baums Page – Source for Track, Wrestling, Golf & Cross Country Results
http://www.baumspage.com

MG Helmets – Great Source for Football helmets from all over the country. As of December 2009, the site is down (assuming threats of legal action), but the high school helmets are said to return sometime in the future.
http://www.mghelmets.com

Ohio Cardinal Conference
http://www.occsports.org

Ohio Helmet Project
http://ohiohelmetproject.com

OHSAA
http://ohsaa.org

Orrville Booster Club
http://orrvilleboosterclub.org

WQKT Radio
http://www.wqkt.com

Canton Repository
http://cantonrep.com

Mansfield News Journal
http://mansfieldnewsjournal.com

The Daily Record
http://www.the-daily-record.com

Are there links you think should be on this page? Send them to me.

Ummm....about those State Champion Picks.

Ok...so my State Champion picks were slightly off (and when I say slightly, I mean WAY off).

Congrats to the four state champs, Newark in D1, Chillicothe in D2, Ottowa-Glandorf in D3, and New Knoxville in D4.

A clean sweep for the public schools.

On that topic, only 2 parochial schools (Cincinnati Moeller did it twice, and Akron St. Vincent) have won a boys basketball title since 2003.

Public schools have won 21 of the last 24 boys state basketball titles, and 19 of the last 20. The last time private schools swept the Boys State Tournament was 1999.

To make it up to my loyal readers, here are my 4 pics for #1 seeds in the NCAA tournament, I'm slightly more confident about these picks.

1. North Carolina
2. Memphis
3. Tennessee
4. UCLA

Memory Lane: Ohio Stadium & St. John Arena

I've gotten a little nostalgic in this state tournament weekend, what better time to find this slideshow of Ohio Stadium (in various stages of construction and renovation) and an awesome set of pictures of St. John Arena, where our beloved Red Riders won all three of their state championships (1992, 95 & 96).

Here's the link.

If seeing that scoreboard in St. John'a doesn't help take you back to the glory years of Orrville basketball, then I don't know what will.

The fact that we were playing in Columbus in the first place was exciting enough, but walking up those steep staircases, seeing the Red Rider logo on the socreboard, seeing your sons & classmates on that floor, watching Smitty work the refs, waiting in line at the Fieldhouse next door to get tickets for the next game, it was all so memorable.

I always get jealous of the teams that make it to State every year, but knowing that you can't make it every year and that someday we'll get back is what makes it tolerable.

What an exciting time that was, it was special for me personally to share that day in 1992 with my father and grandfather. Dad and I have been up and down the basketball trail too many times to count, and Grandpa had been to that building so many times to watch the Bob Knight-led Hoosiers play the Buckeyes, but he didn't attend too many Orrville games......this was one he wouldn't miss though. He passed away a month later, and those March afternoons in 1992 were the last I'd spent with him. Fitting I guess.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy looking at these pictures as much as I did.

Post Season Awards.....Part 2.

Congrats to Zach Wasson (Fr.) and Donald Short (Sr.) for being named to the All-Daily Record First Team.

Cortez McCrary (Sr.) made the 2nd team and Bobby Lehman (Sr.) and Jake Bolyard (Soph.)made Honorable Mention.

Wasson was the only Red Rider to be named 1st team OCC and 1st team Daily Record.

Daily Record POY was Smithville's Kenny Kornowski and COY was Smithville's Michael Snowbarger.

For those keeping track, Smithville's Tyler Bates was also selected to the first team. Oh what could have been.

Congrats to Bobby Lehman - Berkey Classic MVP

A big RRS Blog tip of the cap to Orrville senior Bobby Lehman, who became the 7th Orrville boys basketball player to capture the MVP award at the Wilbur Berkey Classic, showcasing the top senior talent in Wayne County area.

Bobby scored 27 points, on 9-23 shooting (39%) from behind the 3-pt line, and led his team to a 104-72 win on Tuesday night.

It was a great night for all 3 Orrville Seniors playing in their final high school game.

Donald Short scored 20 points and grabbed 5 boards, and Cortez McCrary scored 10 points along with 9 boards.

It's great to see the kids having fun and playing with no pressure or restrictions.

Anyone know the other 6 Orrville players to win the Berkey MVP? I'm assuming we had 2 or 3 in our glory years of the mid 90's, but have no clue as to who they might be (Denson, Ray, Summers, Royer would be 4 guesses).

Post Season Basketball Honors

Congratulations to the following Red Rider basketball players on their post season accolades.

Zach Wasson - Fr. (12.9 ppg, 6 rpg)

All-OCC 1st Team

Honorable Mention NE Inland District

Donald Short - Sr. (10.3 ppg, 4.5 apg, 2.5 spg)

All-OCC 2nd Team

2nd Team NE Inland District

Honorable Mention All-Ohio

Cortez McCrary - Sr. (9.6 ppg, 10 rpg, 3 apg, 2 spg)

All-OCC 2nd Team
2nd Team NE Inland District
Honorable Mention All-Ohio

Bobby Lehman - Sr.

Honorable Mention All-OCC

Honorable Mention NE Inland District

Jake Bolyard - Soph.

Honorable Mention All-OCC

My thoughts? I think Zach Wasson had just as good of a season as either of our All-Ohioans, and deserved at least Special Mention All-Ohio, if not Honorable Mention.

His selection to OCC 1st team gives his performance this season all the credibility it needs. I'm sure his day is coming, but it shouldn't matter what grade he or any other player is in, all that matters should be your on-court performance.

Honestly, I don't think this surprised a lot of people. Same old....

State Final Four is Set......

The OHSAA Boys Basketball State Final Four is set.

Here is the lineup of games for each division per the OHSAA page.

My picks are as follows. Click on each team name for a full tournament bracket for each division.

Division I - Cincinnati St. Xavier

Division II - Poland Seminary

Division III - Anna

Division IV - Worthington Christian

All of the semifinal and finals will be broadcast live on SportsTime Ohio.

Good Luck to Coach Bardall and the Garaway Lady Pirates

• Game can be tracked here
• Game can be heard here starting at 5:15
• Lineups and information can be seen here (and stats once the game is over.
  

Coach Bardall is a very successful 181-43 in his 9 years at the school.

Bear with me.....

OK....My first shot at a blog....and what better subject to cover than Orrville High School sports?

Over time, I'd like this blog to contain game previews, recaps, stats, thoughts and opinions.

Primarily, this space will focus on football and basketball....but will occasionally bounce around into a wide range of topics.

I'd like to devote the majority of space to team history, team records, and discussions on great players and teams from years past, as well as thoughts and opinions on current issues surrounding Orrville sports.

I'd also like to serve as somewhat of a link to OHS alumni currently playing in college and provide stats and information on Red Riders succeeding at the collegiate level.

....More to come.