Buckeye Local takes its 2-4 record on the road Friday night to face unbeaten Caldwell.
Wait. What?
Ten years ago, that statement would have raised a few eyebrows; not that Caldwell was undefeated, but why was Buckeye playing Caldwell. Ten years ago, Buckeye Local was in Division III and despite finishing 4-6, beat John Marshall, a Class 5A school in the OVAC and a Division II equivalent in Ohio. Caldwell? The Redskins were down in Division VI, back when the OHSAA classifications consisted of just six divisions.
Now? Buckeye is back in Division IV after spending five years in Division V. Caldwell is still in the state’s smallest division, now D-VII.
The enrollment cutoff for D-IV is 202. The Panthers have 213. They are closer to Division V than they are Division III. Much closer. Caldwell has 101. A quick scan of the Panthers schedule will see other similarly situated schools.
There are no Division IV teams on it. There are five D-V schools, one in VI, and five in VII. Yes, half of the schedule is comprised of teams from the state’s smallest division.
You know what else? The team’s on Buckeye’s schedule are a combined 42-18. Four of the teams are still unbeaten in Barnesville, Union Local, Edison, and Caldwell.
Shenandoah, which just came back to defeat Buckeye 42-36 last week, is 5-1. Only two teams have losing records right now which also happens to be the Panthers’ two wins thus far. But in fairness, both Shadyside (1-5) and Monroe Central (1-5) have traditionally strong programs.
This is head coach Jim Hoover’s second season in charge after serving as the defensive coordinator during the COVID year in 2020.
The Panthers joined the Mid-Ohio Valley League prior to Hoover’s first season, so the current schedule was set upon his ascension. Small schools or not, it’s a good, competitive schedule.
“I think it’s a pretty tough schedule,” Hoover recently noted. “We have Barnesville which is undefeated, Union Local, Edison, Caldwell are undefeated. Shenandoah has one loss. Toronto has two losses. Harrison two.
“That schedule was in place since I took over. We play teams like Shenandoah and Caldwell anyway because they are in the conference. But we may lighten it up some in the near future.”
Rebuilding the Program
It’s been a slow crawl back to respectability over the last 12 years for the Panthers program.
Following that final year in Division III, the Panthers had a six-year stretch with just two wins total. They finished 1-9 in both 2013 and 2014, and then went an entire graduating class’ length of time, from 2015 to 2018, without a win. That’s not easy to come back from because, while winning may be contagious, so is losing, and year after year of double digit losses and zero wins can start to cast a dark shadow over a program.
It hurts the culture, the confidence level and, at a school with declining enrollment, it can negatively affect interest level. High school athletes who love playing football will generally come out, no matter the circumstances or status of a program – they love the game and are going to play it – but what about the good players, the average or marginal players? They may not fill the stat sheet, but they can help the program as solid, dependable starters, capable backups, and growing reserves that are waiting for their chance to shine.
These average players may opt to play another sport, or none at all, as opposed to putting in all that hard work only to go 0-10 every season. That’s not how you build interest and not how you rebuild a program and that’s why Hoover isn’t concerned at all if anyone questions the teams currently on the Panthers’ schedule, nor if they complain about any potential changes to lighten the load.
“To be honest, I really don’t care what people think (of our schedule),” Hoover said. “I played for Buckeye North back in the 1980s. I know who we played. I know who Buckeye South played. I don’t care what they think.
“I’m trying to rebuild and do what’s best for our program.”
Changing the Culture
Hoover starred at North and graduated in 1989, going on to excel for four years at Eastern Michigan.
He may not be a Buckeye Local grad, but these are still his people, hailing from one of the schools that combined to form Buckeye Local. He knows the history and the success. And make no mistake, Buckeye has experienced success as a program, the pinnacle of which was the 13-1 season in 1994 when the Ron Pobolish-led Panthers finished 13-1, falling to Chardon 17-6 in the state championship game.
The last unbeaten regular season came in 2003, when Northwest abruptly and rudely ended Buckeye’s playoff hopes in Round 1 via a 53-0 defeat. Buckeye didn’t see the playoffs again until a two-year stretch between 2008-09, finishing 7-4 and 8-3, respectively, losing both times in the first round of the playoffs.
After 2009, there’s been only one winning season, a 6-4 mark in 2011.
So for any of the old timers who remember Buckeye playing, and beating, Wheeling Park and John Marshall and Martins Ferry, those days are long gone.
“They think we’ll benefit from playing St. Clairsville, Wheeling Park, Big Red, and all that does is have us go week in and week out getting our brains beat in,” Hoover said. “We’re trying to rebuild our program. Look at what Edison is doing. They watered down the schedule some, but those kids are playing with confidence and they are winning.”
Edison too experienced success in the past but has also dealt with declining enrollment and success on the field.
The Wildcats, however, are currently 6-0 and rated No. 5 in Division V, Region 17. The Wildcats’ schedule? There is one Division III team in winless Woodward, three D-IVs, one D-V, and like Buckeye, seven D-VII schools. Hoover applauded the success current Edison coach Mike Collopy is having. They are both focusing on the now, and the future of the programs.
Winning builds confidence, along with interest which, in turn, builds numbers and increased success. And that’s how Buckeye will rebuild its program. It may require a little patience, but the Panthers are moving in the right direction.
That’s why Hoover wasn’t happy following the loss to the Zeps. His team led 14-0 early and let the lead slip away.
There are no moral victories, and Hoover, his staff, and players, certainly are no longer satisfied with simply playing well or keeping the game competitive.
They are out there to win. They put in the long hours in the weight room, on the practice field, sweating during two-a-days, to win.
Anything less is doing a disservice to all that hard work.
Hoover won’t have it. His players are starting to believe and feel that way too. That’s progress. That’s what it’ll take to make winning seasons a regularity in southern Jefferson County once again.
“We are not in this for moral victories,” Hoover said. “That’s been the culture. Some are satisfied with that, but that’s what we have to change.
“We played hard, but didn’t play well enough to win.”
