Tale of the Tape: Van Wert vs. Otsego

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent sports

After a three year hiatus, Van Wert is back in the OHSAA football playoffs. The Cougars clinched the 12th and final seed in Division IV Region 14 with last Friday’s win over Kenton, which means the team will hit the road for opening round action Friday night, with No. 5 seed Otsego serving as the host opponent.

It’s believed to be the first ever meeting between the two schools that are separated by roughly 75 miles.

Van Wert’s season has seen it’s share of ups and downs. The Cougars started the season with wins over Bryan, Elida and Bath, then fell to Celina 49-28 in Week No. 4. Van Wert trailed early 14-0 then rallied to tie the game 14-14. Later, the Cougars fell behind 28-14 but once again rallied to tie the game 28-28. However, from there, Celina, which finished No. 6 in the state in the final Division III poll of the season, scored the final 21 points of the game to win 49-28.

Van Wert returned home in Week No. 5 and put up a season high in points with a 61-28 win over Defiance. The following week, the Cougars trailed Wapakoneta 14-13 in the third quarter but the Redskins pulled away for a 35-13 win. St. Marys Memorial came to Eggerss Stadium for homecoming in Week No. 7 and it appeared as though Van Wert might emerge with a victory. Van Wert scored a touchdown and hit a two-point conversion and led 42-35 with under a minute left in the game, but a handful of miscues proved to be costly, as the Roughriders scored a touchdown with no time left on the clock, then ran for the two point conversion and the walk-off win.

The Cougars traveled to Putman County to face undefeated, state-ranked and eventual WBL champion Ottawa-Glandorf in Week No. 8. Van Wert had a 20-14 lead after one quarter but only scored once more, as the Titans pulled away for a 38-26 win. In the final home game of the season, the Cougars had a 27-19 lead with just under 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter, but Shawnee scored twice and snuffed out a late drive by Van Wert, giving the Indians a 33-27 win. The loss ended any shot the Cougars had at a home playoff game.

Van Wert snapped a four game losing streak with a 55-28 win at Kenton in the regular season finale.

Otsego opened the season with a pair of wins, 47-13 over Bowsher and 21-14 over Tinora. A 53-17 loss to defending Division V state champion and current Division VI No. 1 Liberty Center ensued in Week No. 3, but the Knights bounced back with a pair of wins, 35-14 over Genoa and 60-0 over Oak Harbor.

Two close losses followed those victories, 43-41 to 9-1 Eastwood and 35-33 to Lake, but Otsego closed the season with three straight wins. The Knights piled up a season high 457 yards running in a 43-0 win over Maumee, a team that will face St. Marys Memorial Friday night, followed a 41-14 win over Rossford and a 62-0 win over Fostoria in the regular season finale.

Here is a closer comparison of the two teams.

Otsego Knights

Record: 7-3 (5-2 Northern Buckeye Conference)

Previous playoff appearances: 1981, 1985, 1987, 1993, 1996, 1999, 2000, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2017, 2020, 2021, 2023, 2024 (11-15 all time playoff record, runner-up in 1981).

Wins this season: Bowsher, Tinora, Genoa, Oak Harbor, Maumee, Rossford, Fostoria. Of those teams, Genoa, Maumee and Rossford are playoff qualifiers.

Losses this season: Liberty Center, Eastwood, Lake. Liberty Center and Eastwood are a combined 19-1 and both are playoff qualifiers. Van Wert edged out Lake (4-6) for the final playoff spot in Region 14.

Average points per game: 40

Opponents points per game: 18.6

Average rushing yards per game: 342.6

Average passing yards per game: 38.7

Rushing leaders

Frank Grady 108-734, 12 touchdowns

Zaden Zivinski 145-718, 13 touchdowns

Dane Leiter 36-566, four touchdowns

Mason Kramer 49-511, seven touchdowns

Dane Fatzinger 29-277, six touchdowns

Carson Williams 7-140 two touchdowns

Owen Heyman 12 carries 138 yards, two touchdowns

Passing

Frank Grady 15-of-21, 349 yards, six touchdowns, one interception

Mason Kramer 1-of-1, 38 yards

Receiving

Ayden Williams 6 receptions, 190 yards, three touchdowns

Mason Kramer 7 receptions, 115  yards, one touchdown

Tyler Haas 1 reception, 44 yards, one touchdown

Dane Fatzinger 2 receptions, 38 yards one touchdown

Van Wert Cougars

Record: 5-5 (4-5 WBL)

Previous playoff appearances: 1985, 1986, 2000, 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 (17-7 all-time, 2020 state champions, runner-up in 2000).

Wins this season: Bryan, Elida, Bath, Defiance, Kenton. None of those teams qualified for the playoffs

Losses this season: Celina, Wapakoneta, St. Marys Memorial, Ottawa-Glandorf, Shawnee. The first four qualifed for the playoffs

Average points per game: 36.7

Opponents points per game: 30.1

Average rushing yards per game: 149.1

Average passing yards per game: 275.5

Rushing leaders

Xavier Kelly 156-1,111, 21 touchdowns

Zach Crummey 121-201, eight touchdowns

Roman Martin 7-125

L.J. Compton 3-34

Gavin Gonzalez 2-21

Passing

Zach Crummey 217-of-323, 2,723 yards, 20 touchdowns, 6 interceptions

Easton Putman 1-of-1, 32 yards

Receiving

Keaten Welch 56 receptions, 890 yards, seven touchdowns

Micah Cowan 59 receptions, 761 yards, two touchdowns

Xavier Kelly 49 receptions, 583 yards, eight touchdowns

Cohen Bragg 27 receptions, 354 yards, one touchdowns

Easton Putman 25 receptions, 252 yards, two touchdowns

Jace Huebner 2 receptions, 15 yards

Note: The winner between Van Wert and Otsego will head to southern Richland County next Friday to face No. 4 seed Clear Fork.