TONIGHT

WHO: Clearview (10-0) vs. Ottawa-Glandorf (6-4)
WHAT: Division IV, Region 14 quarterfinal
TIME: 7:30
WHERE: Tom Hoch Memorial Field
RADIO: WEOL 930-AM, WOBL 1320-AM 

Clearview running back Anthony Hitchens breaks through a hole in the line and sprints toward the opposing safety’s coverage zone.The defender has watched film on the Clippers star and knows that Hitchens’ versatility is going to make this assignment difficult.
Will Hitchens continue arcing toward the sideline and beat the defensive back with his speed? Will he utilize a cutback move and break toward the other side of the field? Or will the running back choose a third option?
“Sometimes I like to lower my shoulder and just go through a defender,” Hitchens said. “When we do our workout plans, I do extra squats and lower-body stuff so when the season comes I have a lot of strength in my legs. I’m not the type of person who’s going to try and run around everyone.”
Whether he’s run around, juked or ran over defenders, Hitchens has put together an amazing junior season. In 10 regular-season games — though Clippers coach Mike Collier said Hitchens was on the sideline with the rest of the starters for good chunks of time during blowouts — the running back has rushed 183 times for 1,517 yards (8.3 per carry) and 23 touchdowns.
Hitchens’ moves have amazed Collier and caused fans on both sides of the field to ooh and aah. They have also helped propel the Clippers to an unblemished 10-0 season and a No. 2 seed in the Division IV regional tournament. Clearview will host Ottawa-Glandorf (6-4) tonight at 7:30.
“If you leave the smallest hole, he’ll find it,” said Oberlin linebacker Devin Martin, who watched Hitchens torch his Phoenix for 211 yards and three touchdowns during Clearview’s 39-7 win in Week 9. “He’s a good cutback runner, so if you leave any creases, he’ll find it and score.”
Which is something Hitchens did a lot this season. He set a school single-season scoring mark with 174 points, adding four defensive touchdowns and a special-teams score to his gaudy offensive numbers. The four defensive scores lead the team, as does Hitchens’ 64 tackles, eight sacks and three interceptions.
The fact Hitchens is as dominant on defense as he is out of the Clippers’ backfield is the main reason Collier places his current star near the top of the list of players he’s coached at the school.
“Obviously, Clearview has had some great running backs and some great linebackers, but to see one kid change the face of a game on both sides of the ball like that … I don’t know if I’ve seen this caliber of player before,” Collier said. “Not only that but you have to look at the quality of kid he is. He’ll always give credit to his linemen first and he’s not going to pound his chest and tell you he’s the greatest thing in the world. He doesn’t feel comfortable with the spotlight on him, he wants his team to be recognized.”
“I like it on defense because when I make a play it helps the offense get going,” Hitchens said. “But when I break a big run on offense it helps get the defense going. It’s nice because I feel I can make a play to help the team whenever I’m on the field.”
How often is that?
“I come off on field goals and on kickoffs, other than that I’m always on the field,” he said.
Collier has no problem raving about his star player and is with Martin and others when marveling at Hitchens’ mix of speed and strength.
“If you put him in a sprint, we usually have a couple kids that are faster than him,” Collier said. “But once that ball is snapped, he just seems to take it to another level. It also helps that he’s so strong — you’re not going to arm-tackle Anthony. If you don’t get a good body on him, or two or three good bodies on him, he’s going to make you pay. He’s a physical guy and we like to get him going early in the game and kind of wear defenses down.”
Collier also called Hitchens “a student of the game,” and said the player watches countless hours of college and pro football, and even likes to play Madden on his Xbox.
“Watching college helps because they’re playing for something,” Hitchens said. “Watching pro football, there’s too much showboating and stuff, and Madden … no, that doesn’t help at all. That’s just having fun.”
Which is something Glandorf defenders might not be having much of tonight.
Contact Shaun Bennett at 329-7137 or sbennett@chroniclet.com.

UNSUNG HERO

Alex Zsigray, Clearview

Clearview coach Mike Collier knows that opposing teams don’t even think twice when putting a plan of attack together against the Clippers defense.
“Most people see (outside linebacker Alex Zsigray) and think, ‘We should run at him,’” Collier said. “He usually gets the best of it.”
Zsigray clocks in at 5-foot-7 and 145 pounds, and probably looks even smaller when standing next to 6-1, 200-pound inside linebacker Anthony Hitchens.
“Alex is probably the smallest kid in the county to play the spot that he plays,” Hitchens said. “But he’s a great linebacker and he has a lot of heart. He’s strong, he gets to the ball and he’s not afraid of contact — he makes plays that help the team.”
Zsigray is right behind Hitchens in most defensive categories, second with 55 tackles, six tackles for loss and seven sacks. He also has a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and one pass defensed.
“I have no fear, basically,” Zsigray said. “I don’t see people as bigger than me or smaller than me — I see them as just another player that ties his cleats up like me. When you put the pads on and you’re in-between the lines, it becomes a matter of who has more heart or who wants it more. I don’t let bigger players or anyone on the field want it more than I do. I really don’t have a choice, I have to do that.”
Zsigray toiled on the junior varsity squad during his first three years at Clearview, making his way onto the field for special-teams plays on Friday nights last season.
“He definitely has a nose for the football,” Collier said. 

CLEARVIEW CLIPPERS

COLORS: Blue and Gold
CONFERENCE: Patriot Athletic
RECORD: 10-0, 7-0 PAC
PLAYOFF HISTORY: 13 appearances (last in 2003)
PLAYOFF RECORD: 6-13
STATE TITLES: 0
COACH: Mike Collier, 2nd year

Noteworthy

The Clippers posted the top defense in the area, surrendering just 106 points (10.6 per game), which edged runner-up Avon’s 137 (13.7). Defensive stat leaders include ILB Anthony Hitchens (64 tackles, 8 tackles for loss and 3 interceptions), Alex Zfigray (55 tackles, 7 TFL), Cody Kaya (44 tackles, 4 TFL), Lucas Wright (3 interceptions) and James Washington and Mike Mealing (2 interceptions apiece).
• Hitchens set a Clearview single-season scoring record with 174 points — 23 rushing touchdowns, four defensive (three interceptions and a fumble) and one kickoff return. Next up was Wright with 55 points — four receiving TDs, a 2-point catch, 26 extra points and a field goal, and Washington with 54 points — nine receiving TDs.
• Clearview is making its 14th playoff appearance — first making the postseason in 1972 and last in 2003. The Clippers had a run of six playoff appearances between 1985-90, switching between Division IV to Division V and back to Division IV during the run. They have never won more than one game during the postseason.

SCOUTING REPORT

Yes, the Clearview coaching staff has watched film of Ottawa-Glandorf facing a speedy football team, and, yes, the Titans had problems defending the other team’s quickness.
That’s good news for the No. 2-seeded Clippers, who face No. 7 Ottawa-Glandorf tonight at 7:30 in a Division IV, Region 14 quarterfinal matchup at Tom Hoch Field.
“One film in particular was their Week 10 game where they played against a team that had some speed that kind of gave them some trouble,” Clippers coach Mike Collier said. “We’re somewhat like that Shawnee team (that beat the Titans, 28-10). We need to use our strengths against their weaknesses and let our speed do some of the work.”
While Clippers fans have witnessed exciting play from their team — including blockbuster runs by junior Anthony Hitchens and long throws from junior quarterback Zach Anderson to senior receiver James Washington — they probably won’t be enthralled with the play of Ottawa-Glandorf.
“We’re primarily a run team,” Titans coach Ken Schriner said. “We run out of the I-formation and we use a 4-3 defense. We’re just an old-school, boring football team.”
That doesn’t mean the Clippers can allow themselves to be lulled asleep by the Titans, who are making their fourth straight playoff appearance. The Western Buckeye League member is led by Jason Lugo, who set the school’s single-game rushing record in Week 8 and again in Week 9. Lugo ran for 302 yards in a 35-6 win over Van Wert and followed with a 317-yard effort during the Titans’ 41-0 win over Celina.
“He’s kind of a scatback, a quick kid that reminds me of Cory Reisner of Buckeye — so we have our hands full,” Collier said. “He’s got a big old fullback in front of him that’s 6-4, 211 (pounds) that they like to pound between the tackles when they need 2 or 3 yards.
“Then they mix it up. The quarterback (Taylor Kuhlman) really runs the ball well, he’s kind of a double-threat kid. They run the option with him sometimes. We’ll have to hopefully contain that.”
Schriner has been impressed by what he’s seen from the Clippers on film.
“They are a team that has a lot of speed and athleticism,” he said. “We play a pretty tough league schedule — three teams from our conference are in the playoffs. But that’s a team that’s 10-0 and they got here for a reason. They play pretty good football.”

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