St. Xavier Wins State Championship

The St. Xavier Bombers are the OHSAA Division I State Champions.

After trailing 10-0 to the St. Ignatius Wildcats (13-2) at halftime, St. Xavier (10-5) rallied to win 27-20 in two overtime periods.

St. Xavier 2016 state championship (photo by Michael Noyes / TriStateFootball.com)

The first half was a defensive showcase from both teams, as they combined for 11 punts.

However, St. Ignatius still found a way to get on the scoreboard.

On the first possession of the game, the Wildcats’ defense forced St. Xavier to punt deep in their own territory. St. Ignatius went on to block the punt and senior defensive lineman Michael Chime recovered the ball in the end zone, giving his team an early 7-0 lead with less than a minute taken off the clock.

“We rushed almost everyone, so they were kind of confused where we were coming from,” Chime said. “I was just one-on-one with [Sean] Clifford, the quarterback, and it was just a good matchup. I came off free, and I didn’t want to hit the punter, so I just stuck my hand out and it was right there.”

St. Xavier quarterback Sean Clifford (photo by Michael Noyes / TriStateFootball.com)

After forcing another Bombers punt, St. Ignatius took advantage of good field position. The Wildcats drove the ball 22 yards on five plays to set up junior kicker Matthew Trickett for a 45-yard field goal with 6:33 remaining in the quarter.

Other than one interception thrown by Wildcats’ senior quarterback Patrick Ryan, both teams traded punts the remainder of the half, going into their locker rooms with a 10-0 St. Ignatius lead.

The second half was a completely different story.

On the first possession of the half, St. Xavier forced Ryan into another turnover, recovering his fumble in St. Ignatius territory.

St. Xavier/St. Ignatius 2016 OHSAA Division I finals (photo by Mike Noyes/TriStateFootball.com)

The Bombers went on to convert a 31-yard field goal, getting their first points on the scoreboard.

After a St. Ignatius punt, St. Xavier’s offense finally struck, scoring their first touchdown of the game.

Senior quarterback Sean Clifford found junior wide receiver Andrew Wittrock from 22 yards out, tying the game at 10 points apiece with 5:21 remaining in the third quarter.

“Just the fact that they’re getting it on the scoreboard now, that’s what they needed to do. And right there, that’s when we started losing momentum,” said St. Ignatius head coach Chuck Kyle.

The score remained deadlocked at 10 points for over 10 minutes, as there was just under seven minutes to play in regulation.

St. Xavier LB Blake Bacevich (photo by Mike Noyes/TriStateFootball.com)

With 6:49 on the game clock, St. Xavier found the end zone again.

A Bombers punt pinned St. Ignatius deep in their own territory, and one play later St. Xavier forced the Wildcats into a fumble. Junior defensive lineman Blake Bacevich went onto recover the ball in the end zone, giving the Bombers a 17-10 lead.

However, the Wildcats would not call it quits.

St. Ignatius then responded by driving the ball 80 yards in 14 plays, taking 5:32 off the clock. They capped off their drive with a 17-yard touchdown pass from Ryan to junior wide receiver Michael Drobnick, tying the game with 1:11 to go.

St. Xavier failed to score on their next offensive possession, forcing the game into overtime with both teams having 17 points.

St. Xavier K Kevin Rockwood (photo by Mike Noyes/TriStateFootball.com)

The teams traded field goals in the first overtime, but only one team scored in the second.

St. Xavier was on offense first in the second overtime, automatically putting pressure on the Wildcats. Ultimately, Clifford found Wittrock again on a seven-yard pass, claiming the 27-20 lead.

St. Ignatius took it to the Bombers 10-yard line on their next possession, but St. Xavier held them short of the goal line on fourth down, awarding themselves the state championship.

“I’m just so happy for these guys,” Clifford said. “I’m so happy that I can contribute to this team, and as a captain, I couldn’t be more proud.”

Clifford finished the game 10-of-25 passing for 142 yards and two touchdowns.

These two teams faced off earlier this season on Oct. 22 in a much different ballgame.

St. Xavier head coach Steve Specht taking a Gatorade shower (Michael Noyes / TriStateFootball.com)

St. Ignatius won 31-14 on St. Xavier’s home field. Clifford did not line up behind center in the game, and Bombers’ junior quarterback Chase Wolf threw two interceptions.

“We watched the film, and got better and made sure this week we would come out strong,” Clifford said. “We battled, and of course it can’t be easy with our team, and we can’t just win handedly. We had to make it close and I wouldn’t want it any other way.”

With the win, St. Xavier became the first team having five losses to win the OHSAA Division I State Championship.

“It’s kind of surreal right now,” said St. Xavier head coach Steve Specht. “When you finish a season 5-5 and everybody’s looking at you sideways, and wondering how you’re sneaking in the playoffs, and now we’re sitting here as state champions at 10-5. It’s been an unbelievable year, and I’m just kind of stumped right now.”

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