Red Knights look for playoff redemption against Strasburg
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TORONTO – The regional quarterfinals has not been kind to the Toronto football team the last two seasons, however, the Red Knights have a shot at redemption this week.
After back-to-back one-point losses in the quarterfinals the last two seasons, the boys from the Gem City are looking to advance to the third week of the postseason for the first time since 2000.
In order to do so, third-seeded Toronto will have to defeat No. 6 seed Strasburg this week in an Ohio Division VII, Region 27 Quarterfinal Friday night at Clarke Hinkle Field. As usual, kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
“We made it to Week 12,” Toronto (9-1) head coach Jaret Aubiel said. “It is crazy that it is here. It took a long time, but it has flown by fast. Both of those things are true. We are excited about the opportunity to play Friday night.”
Strasburg (8-3) advancing to the quarterfinals by defeating No. 11 seed Frontier, 56-21, via mercy rule in the first round last Friday night at home.
The Red Knights received a bye in the first round.
“I think it was good for us,” Aubiel said about the bye. “We used as a chance to get healthy. It came at the right time for us. It gave us the chance to work on some things. I think we got better during the bye week.”
The Red-and-White focused on themselves during the bye week.
“Last week was about ourselves,” Aubiel said. “We focused on getting better on offense, defense and special teams. We are looking forward to a great game Friday night.”
Toronto last played Oct. 23 at home against Cameron. The Red Knights defeated the Dragons, 28-21.
“We hurt ourselves in the red zone early on,” Aubiel said. “Our defense did a good job in the second half. We made a couple more plays than they did, and we found a way to win the game.”
The Red Knights are the sixth OVAC opponent the Tigers will have played this season. The boys from Tuscarawas County played four OVAC teams during the regular season before defeating the Cougars last week in the playoffs.
“Strasburg is familiar with the local area,” Aubiel said. “They played another team from the area Friday night in Frontier. They have some really-good skill guys. Their quarterback does an awesome job with their offense. They are fast and athletic on defense. They are going to be a challenge for us.”
The Orange-and-Black are 4-1 against OVAC opponents this season.
“They are mostly pass,” Aubiel said. “They do have some really-good schemes to run the ball. They spread you out. They are goin”They run a 4-4,” Aubiel said. “They run it well. They are fast and athletic. Running a 404 can be difficult, but they have the athletes to do so.”g to be a challenge for us with their athletes.”
The boys from Jefferson County have not faced a pass-first offense yet this season.
“It will definitely be different for us,” Aubiel said. “We have played some teams that are balanced, and that will help us. They are the fast team we have played that is pass first. It will be interesting to see how we match up with them.”
The Tigers opened the season with four-straight wins as Strasburg defeated St. Thomas Aquinas (43-14) and Catholic Central (28-0) in the first two weeks of the season at home before going on the road in Week 3 and defeating Harrison Central (54-7) via mercy rule out at Wagner Field. The team finished its winning streak by knocking off Conotton Valley (29-22) at home.
“They run a 4-4,” Aubiel said. “They run it well. They are fast and athletic. Running a 4-4 can be difficult, but they have the athletes to do so.”
After a strong start to the season, the Tigers hit a rough stretch as they lost three out of their next four games to drop to 5-3. Strasburg’s perfect season came to an end in Week 5 against Shadyside in the battle of the Tigers as the boys from Belmont County picked up a 22-19 win down at Fleming Field. Strasburg bounced back the next week to defeat Buckeye Trail (41-0) on the road the next week before losing back-to-back games to Newcomerstown (52-14) on the road and East Canton (32-19) at home.
“They do have some size up front, and they have some size with their skill guys,” Aubiel said. “They are an all-around good football team.”
The Tigers have since rebound as Strasburg enters this week’s game on a three-game winning streak as it end the regular season with back-to-back wins against Malvern (35-0) on the road and Tuscarawas Central Catholic (40-20) at home before defeating Frontier last week.
“They are also sound in special teams,” Aubiel said. “We have a lot to prepare for.”
The Red Knights and Tigers have two common opponents in Newcomerstown and Catholic Central. The Red Knights defeated the Trojans, 27-20, in Week 2 on the road before topping the Crusaders, 33-6, two weeks later at home.
This week’s game is expected to be Toronto’s final home game of the season.
“The kids are really excited to be playing in front of our home crowd,” Aubiel said. “Most likely, this will be our last home game. Win or lose, this will likely be our last time playing in front of our home crowd. That’s something that will motivate our kids. We are excited about playing Friday night.”
The Red Knights want to send their seniors out with a win in what is expected to be their final home game.
“We want to send them out the right way,” Aubiel said.
Toronto knows what it is going to take to turn that into a reality.
“We are going to have to win the turnover battle, get stops on defense and execute on offense,” Aubiel said.
The winner of this game will take the winner of the game between No. 2 seed Danville and No. 10 seed Lucas in the regional semifinals next week at a site to be determined. The higher seed will host the game. The Blue Devils are 10-0 on the season, while the Cubs are 6-5. Lucas advanced to the regional quarterfinals by defeating No. 7 seed Beaver Eastern, 14-0, in the first round last Friday night.
Last season, Toronto shut out Grandview Heights, 41-0, at home in the first round of the Division VI, Region 23 playoffs before falling to West Jefferson, 21-20, on the road in the quarterfinals. The Red Knights scored a late touchdown against the Roughriders to pull within one point, however, Toronto opted to go for 2 and the win. Unfortunately, the 2-point conversion was unsuccessful allowing West Jefferson to hold on for the victory.
Two years ago, Toronto defeated Wickliffe, 33-31, at home in the first round of the Division VI, Region 21 playoffs before falling to Springfield, 29-28, on the road in the quarterfinals. The Tigers scored late to secure the victory against the Red Knights.
Toronto won its first 12 games of the season in 2000 before falling to Newark Catholic, 34-0, in the Division VI Region 23 regional final at New Philadelphia’s Quaker Stadium. Toronto defeated Beallsville, 32-26, on the road in the quarterfinals and Portsmouth Notre Dame, 22-18, on the road in the semifinals before falling to the Green Wave.