Playoffs finally coming to Cadiz
Harrison News-Herald Sports Writer
You know the age old saying, “there’s a first time for everything?” well Harrison Central’s football team took it to heart this season. Watching or reading any preseason preview you would find the players and head coach Anthony Hayes detailing their goal of bringing a home playoff game to Wagner Field in Cadiz.
The wait is over. The goal achieved. For the first time in school history, the Huskies will host a Week 11 playoff matchup, as the 13-seeded (Wooster) Triway Titans will travel to the campus of Harrison Central High School to face the fourt-seeded Huskies this Friday night.
While the Huskies are no stranger to the postseason as of late, that doesn’t mean it has been kind to the six-time qualifiers.
The past three appearances (2020-22) for the Huskies have been anything but memorable. In all three seasons, they ran into perennial powerhouses as the lower seeded team in the bottom half of an expanded field format.
South Range, Kirtland and Norwayne respectively made sure the Huskies were quick outs in the postseason the past three years.
This season has a different feel. The Huskies come in with an 8-2 record, riding the high of a four-game win streak to close out the regular season. The excitement has more so been focused on where the Huskies would land in the pecking order, versus whether or not they would qualify for the tournament.
The Titans on the other hand found the postseason in a much different fashion. Just four weeks ago, the Wooster based outfit was 2-5, and clinging to life in the Division V, Region 17 rankings. Fast forward three weeks, and the Titans have reeled off consecutive victories over Manchester, Northwest and rival Orrville in thrilling fashion to finish the regular season at 5-5. The reward? Hello, postseason; hello, Huskies.
The homestanding Huskies will come in with hopes of showcasing their offensive playmakers. Junior Mykel Quito, who has rushed for 1,287 yards and scored 19 touchdowns, shouldbe the centerpiece of the offensive attack. Hayden Cassidy, who has piled up 1,417 passing yards and 15 TDs to date, will lead the attack through the air.
Expect a heavy dose of gamebreakers Cameron McAfee and Parker Hutton as well. The two perimeter players have combined for 16 touchdowns, doing so on the ground, through the air, and in the return game.
The Titans’ main answer to the Huskies deep pool of skill players will be sophomore quarterback Brayden Holt. It should not be a surprise to see the Titans air it out on the talents of Holt’s arm. In Week 10, Holt tossed for 450-yards and five touchdowns to lead a 20-point fourth-quarter comeback over Orrville.
The Huskies will be making their seventh playoff appearance all-time. For the Titans, it will be their 11th trip to the postseason (4-10). Triway is nearly a decade removed from their last postseason victory in 2014, a 42-7 first round win over Galion.
As for the Huskies, they are still searching for that first ever week 11 victory. After all, the other team goal was to get the school’s first playoff victory this season. There’s a first time for everything right?
The Huskies and Titans will kick off at 7 p.m. October 27.
