MVP’s Top 10 Football Programs of the Decade: Nos. 5-6
By Adam Adkins
The decade is just about over. That means one thing in this age of know-it-all writers like me.
Best of the decade lists. And I’ve got a good one.
I am counting down MVP’s Top 10 Football Programs of the Decade. (Read here to see if your school is in our coverage area. Fair warning, if you play in Cincinnati, Columbus or Cleveland, you probably aren’t here.)
I wanted to do this because it’d be fun, first off. Figuring out who was truly the best for our area was a tough task, and everyone has an opinion.
But this is my project and we’re playing by my rules.
Today we continue our countdown of MVP’s Top Football Programs of the Decade…
#6: Chaminade Julienne Eagles
• 1 State Championship (2002)
• 7 Playoff Appearances
• Regular Season Record Of 69-31
• Playoff Record Of 10-6
• Overall Record Of 79-37
Of all the teams on this list, CJ might have produced the most successful college player of the bunch, former Michigan State star Javon Ringer. He was there in 2002 – and is a big reason the Eagles won the title. Ringer still holds D-II finals records for rushing yards (251), TDs (four), rushing TDs (four) and points (24).
Ringer is still around, by the way, doing whatever Chris Johnson tells him to down in Tennessee.
CJ has some name power, don’t they? They certainly don’t have the football tradition of Versailles, or even bitter rival Kettering Alter. But we know them.
Why?
Because they won state, and were the first pure Dayton team (meaning, inside Dayton, not a suburb) to win a title. Without that happening, without that pseudo-stigma being knocked down, could Alter have won their two?
Probably. Winning at this level comes down purely to talent, I think. But CJ was still able to do something no one else had done.
In this list, CJ will be the last of the “okay” programs to make it. Obviously, Versailles, Piqua, St. Mary’s and Carroll all had fine decades, but there is a very large gap between 10-6 and 5-1.
And in my mind, CJ is ahead of Carroll by a decent margin. State titles weigh heavy in this discussion, and CJ’s one title is worth much more to me than Carroll having 5 fewer losses.
CJ’s 2002 year was special. It meant for the year, CJ was the best, not just in Dayton, or their league, or their region, but in the state. We all know that’s what a ring represents.
It’s one thing to set a goal; it’s a whole different story to actually accomplish it. Winning five games in November is an incredibly tough thing to do.
That’s why I give so much credit to those who’ve won. CJ can’t possibly be any higher than this, but I’m very comfortable putting the Eagles at 6.
#5: St. Henry Redskins
• 2 State Championships (2004, 2006)
• 3 Playoff Appearances
• Regular Season Record Of 66-34
• Playoff Record Of 12-1
• Overall Record Of 78-35
Looking at that body of work, you might wonder if St. Henry isn’t really all that much better than CJ.
But there are some important differences.
1) St. Henry won 2 titles and went 12-1 in the postseason. Yes, they only made 3 appearances in the playoffs, but they did big things in the dance.
2) They played in the toughest conference in Ohio, and managed to have roughly the same overall record.
St. Henry easily defeats CJ in my mind, but why aren’t they higher? Two titles is quite impressive, no?
It is, but guess what? Every team from here on out boasts that on their résumé.
Plus, the rather low amount of November trips is a big negative. St. Henry certainly took advantage of the opportunities they had in the postseason, but what if they’d made it 6 times? Could they have added another ring? That’s a big what if.
I’ve noticed that overall, MAC teams tend to be more successful in the postseason. Why? I’d say because they have to play each other a lot, and “each other” in this case means a handful of teams with a lot of success.
Some contend that a tough schedule wears out your team, and I agree. Ten brutal games isn’t conducive to winning titles.
But 6? That’s fine. It builds toughness.
Playing in close games also helps, because it makes the grind of attempting to win a title seem far less daunting.
Remember when we beat Marion Local in 3 OT back in October? Remember how we whipped Versailles and then gave Coldwater all they wanted?
Those are hypothetical examples of course, but imagine you are a team that did that. You beat Marion, Versailles and barely lost to Coldwater. All three of those teams had dominating runs this decade.
It’s the equivalent of beating the Patriots or Colts in the NFL.
Ric Flair once said, “To be the man, you have to beat the man.” A team truly does have to learn to win. It’s not just a boring color commentator’s reference, it’s real.
Developing the skill of holding off a team’s rally with a minute to go, or creating one of your own to win is a vital part of a team’s psyche. Or, if you’re a dominant team, learning how to step on your opponent’s throat is a crucial skill.
Knowing how to rattle an opponent, knowing how to break them… the great ones do that. St. Henry, during their 2 title runs, did just that.
St. Henry, when on, was as good as anyone has been this decade. That example I listed above wasn’t entirely hypothetical; in 2006 (Henry’s 2nd state title), they hammered Marion Local 31-0, lost 14-7 to Coldwater and obliterated Versailles by 43 points.
In the postseason, they won their games by 37, 27, 33, 7 and 21 respectively. St. Henry destroyed people that year.
2004 was hardly different. They beat Local (that was their lone down year), lost to Coldwater, narrowly beat Versailles and preceded to take a Sherman’s March through the postseason, winning games by 9, 28, 34, 13 and 28.
St. Henry doesn’t have a perfect résumé, but damn it all if they didn’t make it happen when they had the chance. Two dominant state runs make them an easy choice for the fifth spot in this countdown.
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Nos. 9-10 & Intro
TEAMS 7-8
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