“We’re definitely excited,” said senior wide receiver Duncan Bradley. “We’re ready to get there and see some different out-of-state competition.”
Springfield is no stranger to facing out-of-state opponents in recent years. Last year, the Wildcats traveled to Indianapolis to play Missouri powerhouse St. Louis De Smet Jesuit in Week 2, beating the Spartans 29-22. Springfield has also played Kentucky state power Louisville Trinity in a scrimmage game each of the past three seasons.
Now, they’ll face their toughest test yet in DeMatha.
“It means we’re taking the steps we want to be in the upper echelon of talent in Ohio,” said Springfield coach Maurice Douglass. “It says that those guys have done a lot of good things over the last four-to-five years to put us in a position where those teams would even want us to come to any type of (showcase). Kudos to our kids and their work ethic.”
Junior quarterback Brent Upshaw threw four TDs as the Wildcats beat 11-time state champion Cleveland St. Ignatius 27-11 in Week 1. Springfield senior Duncan Bradley had eight catches for 151 yards and two TDs, senior Da’Shawn Martin caught two passes for 80 yards and a TD and junior Jamil Miller caught four passes for 33 yards and a TD as Springfield’s high-powered offense gained 331 yards in the season-opening victory.
DeMatha, however, will pose a different type of challenge for Springfield. The Stags are ranked No. 69 nationally by MaxPreps, while the Wildcats are ranked No. 82. The Stags have sent 32 players to the NFL in their program’s history — the most by any school in the nation — including Washington Commanders defensive end Chase Young and Pittsburgh Steelers running back Anthony McFarland, Jr.
After Springfield’s win last week, Douglass said he didn’t know much about DeMatha except that “they’ve got dudes.”
DeMatha returns its top two offensive lineman in Mason Lindsay (Pittsburgh) and Terez Davis (Maryland) as well as quarterback Denzel Gardner and running back Bud Coombs. Defensively, they’re led by Virginia Tech commit Emmett Laws.
“They’ve got some dudes from last year,” he said. “We’re going to have our hands full. We got off to a good start and we’re 1-0. Now we can try to go 2-0.”
Springfield’s showdown with DeMatha is the second of three games scheduled as part of the early season showcase — Canadian powerhouse Clarkson North will play West Virginia power Martinsburg at 1 p.m. and 2022 D-V state runner-up Ironton will play Jackson at 8 p.m.
Tickets are $20 for all three games.
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