Stover comes up big to push team into the playoffs
LEXINGTON, Ohio -- Ohio State linebacker commit Cade Stover has had a big senior season on both sides of the football for his Lexington (Ohio) team. Stover once again came up big on Friday night, rushing for three touchdowns in a 35-6 win over Canton South. The win put Lexington into the OHSAA playoffs.
"The game was great, I thought we played good as a team," Stover said. "We just kept battling."
Things weren't always looking good for Lexington. The Minutemen started just 1-4 and were left for dead, but Stover and his teammates regrouped from a bad start to win five in a row and keep their season alive for at least another week.
"We started just 1-4 and now we're playing in week 11, we're hot," he said. "We just changed a few things, we started running the ball well and we're just going to keep rolling."
Stover, who played a lot of quarterback as a junior, as moved into a feature running back role this season where he has put up big numbers seemingly every week. Friday night saw him rack up 239-yards in muddy conditions. Stover will have plenty of opportunities to continue playing football but high school football is special and the Buckeye pledge was highly motivated to keep his high school career going.
"I know I've got a ton of football left in the future but to know that I can put on the Purple and Gold of Lexington at least one more time is special," he stated.
Taking care of business in the first round is at the forefront of Stover's mind right now, but he has also been keeping an eye on the Buckeyes. The program has been under the microscope seemingly all season long but Stover is still very optimistic about the state of affairs in Columbus.
"I'm talking to coach Urban (Meyer), coach (Bill) Davis, and coach (Greg) Schiano on a daily basis," he explained. "Everybody else is going to act like all hell is breaking loose but I know what that program is about and I know what's going to happen. I have no worries at all."
Stover and Lexington will face Tiffin Columbian on Friday night in the first round of the playoffs.