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Aug. 22—Familiarity will be a theme when Alter plays Fairmont to kick off the 2024 high school football season Thursday night.
Familiar foes, familiar coaches and familiar faces in each lineup when the ball goes in the air at Roush Stadium in Kettering.
“Let’s face it, there are going to be 7-8000 people there, and there are many colleges that don’t get that many people showing up for games,” said longtime Alter head coach Ed Domsitz. “It’s a gigantic game. Probably 80-85% of our student body will be there, so this is an opportunity for our kids to play in front of a great crowd and a tremendous rivalry where they’re being supported by the very high percentage of their classmates.”
The 57th meeting between the schools will also represent Alter’s first chance to take the field for an official game since being humbled by Cleveland Glenville 38-3 in the Division IV state championship game last December.
That ended a seven-game winning streak for Alter but what was nonetheless a bounce-back season. After back-to-back 6-6 campaigns, the 2023 Knights looked more like the program that had already made five state championship games, including victories in 2008 and ’09, under Domsitz.
A majority of that squad is back, including quarterback Gavin Connor and leading rusher Noah Jones, but Domsitz said some work must be done to rebuild the offensive line around senior Noah Marquez.
On the other side of the ball, end Nolan Ogburn (14 tackles for loss), tackle Simon Deddens, linebackers Okemdi Eze (10 TFL) and Connor Watkins and defensive back John Keighley are among those back to lead a unit that allowed nine points in the playoffs before running into the Tarblooders in Canton.
Fairmont coach Dave Miller expressed no doubt Alter will pose his team a great challenge.
“When I look at our schedule, and it’s going to be a tough schedule,…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/gigantic-game-alter-fairmont-set-141100758.html
Author : Dayton Daily News, Ohio
Publish date : 2024-08-22 14:11:00
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