By Jeff Hodge
Contributing Writer
INDIANAPOLIS – Fifth-ranked Indianapolis Cathedral wrapped up its seventh state championship in school history and second in three years Nov. 29 at Lucas Oil Stadium, defeating No. 3 Fort Wayne Dwenger 10-7 in an an old-fashioned Class 4A championship slugfest that was reminiscent of the Ohio State-Michigan ground assaults of the 1970s.
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“It’s a sense of relief,” said Cathedral coach Rick Streiff. “We knew it would be a dogfight. When you put two Catholic schools out there that are pretty good, you’re going to get a game like this.”
Dwenger had several opportunities to win – or at least tie the game – but Dwenger junior Emerson Ueber missed two field goals. One was wide right, the other blocked by unblocked senior Allen Richardson late in the fourth quarter. And the Saints had one more chance to get the lead with under two minutes remaining.
Running for his life from yet another furious Fighting Irish pass rush on 3rd and 10 from the Saints’ own 22, senior quarterback Trevor Yerrick somehow eluded several tacklers long enough to make a shovel pass to senior running back Joe Colone, who squirmed loose for an apparent first down.
But the electrifying play was nullified by an illegal block that everyone in the stadium other than the line judge knew was perfectly clean. I guess when making a block on a defender, the offensive player must give notice and also obtain permission before planting a solid hit with helmet clearly in front of the hittee.
Good grief, Charlie Brown.
“Our fourth quarter drive was just guts and our guys not wanting to quit,” said seventh-year Chris Svarczkopf. “Trevor did a great job keeping the ball alive. It’s too bad it didn’t end up the right way.
“I’m really disappointed for our players because they played their hearts out. Mistakes ended up being the difference. Cathedral was very physical, and they capitalized on our mistakes.”
Absolutely. The bottom line is that opportunistic Cathedral came away with a hard-fought victory despite managing just 131 yards of total offense and only nine first downs, well below their season averages of 284 yards and 14, respectively.
That’s because Cathedral’s defense was up to the challenge as it had been all year, limiting Dwenger to only 179 yards of total offense (the Saints came in averaging 327) and intercepting Yerrick twice.
“Our defense played super,” Svarczkopf said. “We just weren’t able to get things going offensively when we needed to (on four trips into Irish territory, Dwenger managed but one touchdown). When we did, a mistake or penalty cost us a score.”
That was certainly the case at the start of the third quarter. On the second play, Yerrick’s pass to the left flat bounced off his receiver’s chest and into the hands of Cathedral senior linebacker Kevin Foley at the Dwenger 28.
The Irish ran the ball six straight times, the last a 10-yard scoring burst up the middle by junior RB Nick Najem (23 carries for 89 yards). The point after from junior Scott Miller, who had given Cathedral a 3-0 lead on a 32-yard field goal that capped the game’s opening possession, made it 10-7.
Asked if his staff had made any changes after trailing 7-3 at halftime, Streiff said no.
“We asked the coaches, are they (Dwenger) doing anything we didn’t prepare for, and they weren’t,” said the second-term Irish coach (Streiff led the Irish from 1989-2001 before returning this season). “So we said, ‘OK, let’s go play football.’ ”
Dwenger had taken its only lead just before halftime, ironically enough after a Cathedral turnover. On 2nd and 15 from the Irish 15, junior QB Kofi Hughes passed to Najem for a 26-yard gain. But 6’6” senior free safety Tyler Eifert knocked the ball loose, and it was recovered at the Cathedral 40 by junior nose tackle Isaac Evans with 3:08 to play before the break.
Senior RB Robby Kimes was able to convert on 4th and 2 four plays later, and Dwenger had a first down at the Irish 14 when Cathedral was flagged for a 15-yard face mask penalty. Yerrick then hit Kimes on a 14-yard scoring strike, and Ueber’s PAT made it 7-3 with 47 seconds remaining before halftime.
Congratulations to both teams on terrific seasons and a classic defense-laden 4A state final between two evenly matched giants. It was just what old-time gridiron aficionados love and, as it turned out, the perfect foil for the 5A game to follow.
Dwenger’s Colone named Mental Attitude Award winner
Following the game, the IHSAA Executive Committee named Joe Colone of Fort Wayne Dwenger as the winner of the Phil N. Eskew Mental Attitude Award in Class 2A football. The award is presented annually to a senior participant in the state finals who was nominated by his principal and coach and has demonstrated excellence in mental attitude, scholarship, leadership, and athletic ability.
It is named in honor of the IHSAA’s third commissioner, who served the association from 1962-76 and who helped initiate the state tournament in 1973. Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance, the IHSAA’s corporate partner, presented a $1,000 scholarship to Dwenger High School in Colone’s name.
Colone played both ways at running back and linebacker and is also a three-year letterwinner for the Saints’ track & field team. He led the Saints as captain of this year’s team and was named to the Summit Athletic Conference’s second team.
Colone is the vice president of his senior class and serves as president of Dwenger’s chapter of the National Honor Society. He is a member of the Key Club, Spirit Club, and Bishop Dwenger Ambassadors. He has volunteered with the Community Harvest Food Bank and “Lose the Training Wheels,” a bike camp for kids with special needs.
Academically, Colone ranks 13th in his class with a 4.52 GPA on a 4.0 scale. The son of Anthony and Jeri Colone of Fort Wayne plans to attend Indiana University and study biology.
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