CANTON, Ohio– The Anderson Raptors and Avon Eagles will face off in the State Championship on Thursday night at 7 p.m. at the Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium. The Raptors are looking for their first State title victory since 2007. They were runner-ups in 2008 and just last season in 2024. The opponent remains the same, as this will be a rematch of the State Championship just one year ago. Avon beat Anderson 20-13 in that game.
Anderson is 14-0 and coming off of a 29-22 win against Big Walnut. Anderson jumped out to a 23-8 halftime lead and prevented a comeback attempt from Big Walnut in the fourth quarter. Avon is 13-1 and coming off of a 38-7 win against Walsh Jesuit. Walsh Jesuit took the opening kickoff for a touchdown before Avon rattled off 38 straight points. The lone loss for the Eagles came in week two against Spruce Creek, a narrow 25-22 defeat. Avon has won 29 straight games against teams in Ohio and are looking to win their second straight state title.
Quarterback Owen Scalf leads the Raptors with 5,224 total yards (4,584 passing, 640 rushing) and 46 touchdowns (39 passing, 7 rushing). Jordan Davis has 1,386 total yards (715 receiving, 671 rushing) and 25 touchdowns (21 rushing, 4 receiving). Tysin Weaver and Cooper Kathman are the receivers for Anderson. Weaver has 80 receptions for 1,250 yards and 19 touchdowns. Kathman has 83 catches for 1,044 yards and 8 touchdowns. Brady Kuhn leads the Anderson defense with 118 tackles, 9 sacks, and a fumble recovery. James Schnurstein has 8.5 sacks on the season.
Quarterback Blake Elder leads Avon with 2,827 yards and 31 touchdowns. Running back Cam Wendell has 11 touchdowns, while his counterpart Quiante Smith has 583 yards and 9 touchdowns this season. Linebacker Ryan Stolarski leads the Eagles defense with 98 tackles and 5 sacks.
Anderson comes in ranked 2nd in Ohio and 58th nationally according to MaxPreps. Avon is ranked 5th in Ohio and 85th nationally according to MaxPreps.
Will Avon win their second straight State Championship or will Anderson complete the perfect season and capture their second state title in school history?
Written by Eli Altherr
