Tttthhheeeiiirrr bbbaacckkk!!! The Fremont Ross Little Giants are back. They won tonight 35-17 against Perrysburg.

“It’s been a long time since we were 1-0,” said coach Derek Kidwell. Last year, the team went 4-6, and won just one game in the previous two years before Kidwell took over.

Kidwell said the strong running game could be attributed to the strength and size of the offensive line. Ross players hit the weight room hard after last season.

The Little Giants wore purple helmets for the first time in at least 30 years.

“We want to bring the purple pride back,” he said.

This from an old Sandusky Coach....he know about Fremont Little Giant Pride!

Big plays give Little Giants win
Ross, now 2-0, beat Central for first time in four years

By VINCE GUERRIERI
Sports Editor
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TOLEDO — In the last four minutes of the fourth quarter, it was Ross quarterback Aaron Opelt who came up with two big plays, one which ultimately put the Little Giants ahead of Toledo Central Catholic and one that preserved the win.

The Little Giants start the season 2-0 by beating the Irish, 20-14, for the first time in four years in a hard-fought game where Ross didn’t take the lead until the last 35 seconds of the game.

“It’s a sad thing someone has to lose a game like this,” said Ross coach Derek Kidwell. “Fremont Ross was down for a while, and now it’s our turn to be up.”

It was third-and-12 for the Little Giants, pinned back in their own territory with 3:45 left. A swarm of Irish defenders were taking down Opelt when he spotted Ryan Ottney downfield and threw the ball to him in triple coverage for the first down.

“We can’t think we have him sacked,” said Central coach Greg Dempsey. “We have to play the whole play.”

The first down set up a touchdown by Bryan Burel to put Ross up 20-14. Blair Ellenberger missed the extra point on a bad hold by Ottney.

The Irish got the ball back with 30 seconds left and started moving downfield. Quarterback Dane Sanzenbacher handed the ball off to Xavier Graciani, who lateraled it back to Sanzenbacher. Opelt was in on defense for that play.

“He’s our best athlete,” Kidwell said. “We wanted him on the field.”

Opelt tackled Sanzenbacher and threw him out of bounds at the 10 yard line.

“It was my first hit in a couple of years, and I loved it,” Opelt said.

The tackle saved a score but Central had a first down with 20 seconds to play.

“God, I wished we had three more feet of sidelines,” Dempsey said.

Ottney’s muffed hold loomed large.

“If we lose the game, it’s my fault,” he said he thought to himself.

A pass fell incomplete, and Sanzenbacher tucked the ball under his arm and gained five yards. The Irish couldn’t line up for another play and time expired, leaving thousands of Central fans in stunned silence as Ross players stormed the field.

The victory was the first one against the Irish for this year’s senior class. Overall, Ross is now 12-7 in the series, started in 1977.

Kidwell said Opelt made good decisions in last week’s 35-17 victory over Perrysburg, but had to improve his footwoork, which he did this week. Last week’s victory relied more on the Little Giants’ running game, and Burel was once again Ross’s leading scorer, with two touchdowns.

Kidwell also commended his team for its never-say-die attitude.

“One thing we don’t have to work on is our heart,” he said.

Opelt said the team is on the way to meeting one of its goals; Ross is now one game away from winning its first three games.

Next week is the Little Giants’ home opener, against Tiffin Columbian on Friday. Clyde beat Columbian 7-0.

At the end of the game, some players tried to douse Kidwell with a cooler full of water.

“Don’t do that,” he said. “We’re supposed to win from now on.”

Ross 7...Columbia 21

It took a lot of searching to find this score. It's amazing ever the Messenger didn't have it.