Canton South's 'special team' sees special season end in OHSAA football state semifinals
WADSWORTH — Canton South's football players were showered with warmth and respect as they walked off the field a final time.
One Wildcats fan expressed his appreciation with a hearty voice.
"Thank you, boys," he shouted.
Head coach Matt Dennison's team took Wildcats fans on a memorable journey this season.
It ended Friday night with a 42-21 loss to defending champion Cleveland Glenville in an OHSAA Division IV state semifinal at Art Wright Stadium. The Tarblooders will get to defend their title next Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium against Kettering Alter.
By then, the Wildcats' disappointment over falling a few steps shy of their ultimate goal will have subsided a bit. At 14-1, this was the most successful season in South history.
Receiver Tavon Castle sensed right away this would be a special season.
"Week 1 when we beat St. Clairsville, the energy, communication and heart we had made it one of the most special games," Castle said. "I knew from that point we were going to be a special team, which we were."
Only the reigning champs could find a way to beat this special team. The Tarblooders raced out to a 14-0 lead and scored two touchdowns late in the first half to make it 28-7 at halftime.
Quarterback Ruel Tomlinson scored on a 1-yard run with 50 seconds left in the half. After a South turnover, Damarion Witten caught a 19-yard TD pass from halfback D'Shawntae Jones as time expired.
"They just have guys that make plays," Dennison said. "They're just an excellent collection of talented men. They're a good football team."
The Wildcats needed to execute and have things go their way to take down Glenville. They appeared to gain some traction when a 51-yard TD pass from Poochie Snyder to a wide-open Tre Wilson cut the Tarblooders' lead to 14-7.
A Ma'Taeaun Frazier interception put South in position to possibly tie the game. The Wildcats' appeared to extend their drive on a third-down completion to Castle, but the officials did not give him forward progress.
South punted. Glenville's wild end to the first half followed.
"That was tough because we knew every yard mattered," Dennison said of the Castle completion. "I kept telling people we needed to be in striking distance before halftime. If we would have moved the chains, that may have turned into keeping us within striking distance."
Snyder threw for 197 yards and a touchdown and also ran for a TD in the final game of his record-setting career. Ethan Fricke's touchdown run late in the game closed out the scoring.
Snyder finishes as the all-time Stark County leader in passing yards and passing touchdowns — two records that could stand for awhile.
"He's an amazing person on and off the field," Castle said. "There's nothing really more to say about him. He's going to be amazing at the next level, and I can't wait to see what he does.
"He's the reason we're here. I have nothing but love for him."
Snyder just wishes he could have ended his record-setting career by winning South's sought-after prize next week.
"Obviously the personal records are amazing for me. I know my name is on them, but it's just really an embodiment of the team success we had.
'There's a quote I saw. It was like 'In team success comes personal recognition.'"
Reach Mike at mike.popovich@cantonrep.com
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This article originally appeared on The Repository: Canton South football team's special run ends in OHSAA state semifinal
