2022 Warriors football schedule features three new opponents, Saturday game

By Carol McIntire

Editor

The Carrollton varsity football schedule looks a little different for the 2022 season, including a Saturday afternoon contest, three new opponents and all Eastern Buckeye Conference games clumped together at the end of the season.

Canton South, St. Clairsville and Coventry are gone from the schedule, replaced by Manchester, Philo and Garaway.

“Canton South withdrew from the EBC so we knew we would be looking for one new game,” said Carrollton Athletic Director Jason Eddy. “The ADs (athletic directors) from the league schools got together and decided to play all the league games together at the end of the season, which is the way most leagues do it. It worked out that we will still play our rivalry game with Minerva in the final game of the season.”

Eddy said with all schools in the EBC looking for a new opponent to replace Canton South, it was tough to find games that could be considered “local”.

“When you are looking for a non-league opponent, you are always looking for a game you think you can win,” he said, adding, “Of course the other team is thinking the same way.”

The Warriors kick off the season Aug. 19 on the road against the Manchester Panthers, one of three new opponents and a member of the Principals Conference. 

“They are traditionally a good football team,” noted Carrollton Football Coach Jim Tsilimos. “They are a Division V team, (the Warriors are Division IV) that made the playoffs last season and defeated Edison in the first round then lost in the second round,” Tsilimos said of the Summit County school.

The Philo Electrics will visit Carrollton Aug. 26, the same evening members of the 2022 Carrollton High School Athletic Hall of Fame are introduced. 

“Philo will be a good opponent for us,” Tsilimos noted. “They are also a Division IV team and in the same region as us.”

The Electrics finished the season with a 6-5 record last season, (2-3 in league play) good enough for fourth place in the Muskingum Valley Conference. They made the playoffs under the expanded system in 2021 but lost in the first round. The team hails from the Zanesville area  (Duncan Falls) where they compete with Tri-Valley, Sheridan, River View, John Glenn and Maysville in league action. They are a member of the East District with Carrollton.

After a home game with St. Thomas Aquinas Sept. 2, the Warriors travel to Tuscarawas County for a matchup with yet another new opponent, the Garaway Pirates.

“They are going to be a challenge for us,” noted Tsilimos. “They were ranked in the state and lost in the regional finals to South Range 15-12 last year.”

The Pirates, a Division V team, finished the 2021 season with a 10-0 record and won the Inter Valley Conference South Division. Others in south division include Claymont, Indian Valley, Ridgewood, Sandy Valley and Tuscarawas Valley.

The Warriors make a trip to Akron Saturday, Sept. 17, for a 2 p.m. game with the Kenmore-Garfield Golden Rams.

“This was originally going to be a Friday game at Lisbon, but didn’t work out,” Tsilimos noted. “They came here last year and we were lucky and got a victory (22-6) against a good Division II team.

Eddy noted he cleared the schedule of other sporting events that day so all Carrollton students will have the opportunity to make the trip to Summit County to watch the game. 

“Our football kickers are also soccer players so we needed to clear the schedule,” he said. “I can’t remember the last time we had a Saturday game.”

Conference games

The Warriors open EBC play Sept. 23 at Marlington and host Alliance for the second year in a row Sept. 30 (homecoming game). Carrollton travels to Salem Oct. 7 and host West Branch Oct. 14. The team closes out the season at home Oct. 21 against Minerva. 

Last year the Warriors ended the regular season with a 7-3 overall mark and 4-2 in league play with wins over Canton South (34-28), Alliance (27-24), Salem (28-26) and Minerva (49-14) and losses to Marlington (35-28) and West Branch (43-12).

The Warriors defeated Cambridge 37-21 in the first round of the playoffs and fell to St. Clairsville 38-9. 

SCRIMMAGES

Carrollton will host Southern Local, Bellaire and Cuyahoga Falls Friday, Aug. 5 at 10 a.m. at Community Field and travel to Indian Creek Thursday, Aug. 11, at 7 p.m.