2007 Around the Great Lakes columns

November 13, 2007 Case linebacker helps brew turnaround As he talked with Tom Brew in the coach’s office at Mentor, a suburb 28 minutes northeast of Cleveland, Debeljak knew he had a linebacker that would bolster his defense and energize his teammates.

November 6, 2007 R.V. runs well for Oberlin For the Yeomen, it is not a bus or Cadillac that have opposing defenses on their heels. The Yeomen ground game is running across the goal line in the form of an R.V.

October 30, 2007 Heller making waves for Waynesburg Graduating two of the top rushers in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference and having to rebuild on the fly may have been too tall of an order for some coaching staffs. However, that was not the case for the Yellow Jackets.

October 26, 2007 B-W's Coach Packard, remembered When talking about former Baldwin-Wallace football coach Bob Packard, who passed away after a heart attack last Saturday, he is remembered for how he lived his life and treated people with respect.

October 23, 2007 Flying Dutchmen have hope in Manning Playing quarterback at the college level requires a good mix of confidence and leadership. So does being a quarterback with the last name of “Manning.”

October 16, 2007 A Jones of all trades Zander Jones spends his free time on the soccer, football and baseball fields. At Ohio Wesleyan, he began as a soccer player in the fall while pitching for the baseball team during the spring. Once a new kickoff rule was instituted in college football, Jones was called upon to help the Battling Bishops.

October 9, 2007 Father and son lead Carnegie Mellon What happens when the father is one who has the most experience? The answer for the Carnegie Mellon Tartans comes in the form of senior outside linebacker Jonathan Bodnar.

October 2, 2007 Ohio Northern, Mount Union gear up for showdown Two seasons ago, the Ohio Northern Polar Bears made the trip to Alliance for a game against the nation’s top-ranked team, Mount Union. Under the direction of coach Dean Paul, a Mount Union graduate, the Polar Bears upset the Purple Raiders 21-14.

September 25, 2007 Hail to the Chiefs, in Washington The offensive attack of Washington and Jefferson replicates a packaging company like UPS or FedEx. Whether it is 90 degrees in August or nearly zero in December, the Presidents deliver through the air and on the ground.

September 18, 2007 Pearson brings Tri-State some thunder While he served as a high school head coach in Fort Wayne, Ind., Tri-State coach Matt Land walked into the gymnasium and found a middle linebacker in Courtney Pearson.

September 11, 2007 Case's Cowdrick is comeback kid During his junior year at Mentor High School, located in an eastern suburb of Cleveland, the chances of Tim Cowdrick playing college football were good. However, that summer changed everything.

September 7, 2007 Top receiver could cap Crusaders' offense In the visiting locker room at Mount Union last fall, the Capital Crusaders knew they would be losing one of the most prolific passers in the history of NCAA Division III football. However, they thought one of Rocky Pentello’s favorite targets would be in uniform when the team traveled to Springfield for the 2007 opener with the Wittenberg Tigers.

August 28, 2007 Games to watch for 2007 Football has a special place in this part of the country. With the Pro Football Hall of Fame down the street from Mount Union and several professional teams in the region, the game can seem overwhelming, but we are here to celebrate football and the student-athletes that give their time, hearts and souls to it.