Ohio Valley Football 2022

Toronto High School

TORONTO – The Toronto football team's 2021 season resembled a rollercoaster ride – there were a number of ups and downs and twists and turns.

A four-game losing streak in Weeks 4-7 threatened to derail the Red Knights' season, however, the boys from the Gem City dug deep and after losing four of five games, the Red-and-White won their final three games to secure a spot in the Ohio Division VII Region 25 playoffs as the No. 12 seed. Unfortunately, Toronto's season came to a screeching halt as No. 5 seed Independence scored the final 23 points of the game to pull away for a 44-13 victory ending the Red Knights' season at 5-6.

"We went on a good run to end the season," Toronto head coach Josh Franke said. "We were able to get into the playoffs. I thought we finished really strong. Last year, we played a ton of sophomores and freshmen. We won our last three games going into the playoffs. We played really well at the end of the season. That is a testament to our kids. They matured throughout the season.

"The playoff game did not go the way we wanted it to, but there were a lot of positives from last season that can be carried over into this season."

Toronto was a young team last year, and the youth movement will continue for the Red Knights this season as the team welcomes a talented freshmen class to the ranks on a team featuring only three seniors.

"We were so young last year," Franke said. "That will clearly benefit this season. We are looking to pick up right where we left off from last year.

"Last year, we started a lot of young kids on Friday night. We had to do a lot of learning last year. This year, it is not about learning the playbook, but it is about getting reps and fine tuning some things."

This season, Toronto begins it journey to hopefully what will be it's fourth-straight playoff berth with a roster full of underclassmen.

"We have about 30 kids," Franke said. "We are typically around 30. Some years we have a little less, and some years we have a little more. Naturally, when you have three seniors out of 30 kids your numbers in your underclassmen are really good.

"We have a lot of kids in our 7th and 8th grades. Our numbers will definitely go up."

Toronto lost last season's starting quarterback as Aiden Mick graduated in the spring. This season, Zeb Kinsey and Russ Dickinson are battling it out to see who will be the team's starting signal caller once the regular season rolls around.

"I would not be surprised if both play in our opener against Wellsville," Franke said. "We are going to look at our scrimmages, and see how they perform and we will take it from there. We are fully prepared to play both, and I truly believe we can win with either guy. Ultimately, we are going to go with the guy that gives us the best chance to win."

Kinsey saw a good amount of playing time last year, but not at quarterback.

"When you are talking playing time, Zeb played in seven games last year," Franke said. "He has a lot of experience. He played three games at tailback, so he has a lot of experience playing on Friday night. As far as experience playing quarterback, he has very little."

Zane Kinsey will be the team's starting tailback this season, while the fullback will be Spencer Board. The Red Knights will feature a trio of speedy wide receivers in Dom Bouscher, Logan Sloane and Aiden Filby.

Nolan Dickinson will serve as the team's tight end.

The Red Knights have changed things around offensively going into this season.

"Our offense is going to look differently this season due to our speed," Franke said. "We have a lot of weapons. We have got guys like Zane Kinsey, Dom Bouscher, Logan Sloane and Aiden Filby. We have a lot of speed.

"Our offensive linemen are athletic. Our offense is going to look different. We are going to try and utilize our speed as much as possible."

The abundance of speed is Toronto's biggest strength.

"Most definitely I would say our speed is our strength," Franke said. "We are going to build the team around the weapons we have.

"We have some guys who spent a lot of time in the weight room. We definitely have a lot of belief in that group as well.

"In years past, we have had big kids play fullback and tight end. We are missing those pieces this season. We are trying to build those positions. Nolan Dickinson, who normally is a wide receiver, is going to play tight end. I definitely think our strength is the speed that we possess."

The Red Knights have a big group up front on the offensive line. Cayden Benton will play left tackle, Seth Thomas will lineup next to him at left guard while Cale Chiasson will play center. On the other side, Andy Silverthorn will line up at right guard, while Max Silverthorn will play right tackle.

"Our offensive line is pretty big," Franke said. "That's pretty typical for us. Our left tackle – Caden Benton – is 6-6, 275, Seth Thomas is 6-2, 232, Cale Chiasson, who will be our center, is 6-0, 230, Andy Silverthorn is 6-2, 232 and Max Silverthorn is 6-5, 280."

Toronto will be relying on its players to make contributions on both sides of the ball.

"Though we had a lot of young guys gain experience last year, we are still very young," Franke said. "We only have three seniors. All three seniors are starters. We have a lot of sophomores and juniors. We are going to need to see guys improve."

"Last year, we had a lot of kids who played who in another situation might have been playing Saturday mornings."

Jaworski, who can also play on the offensive line, and Henry are two of five freshmen expected to make major contributions to the team this upcoming season.

"Our freshmen class is filled with a lot of promise," Franke said. "We have a lot of young talent. They are all going to play on Friday night. They are a talented group. They are competing right now. They are putting pressure on guys who last year played and started on Friday nights.

"Brody Winters is a wide receiver. Caden McGrath is a wide receiver. They are a talented group of kids."

Heath Thomas (OL/DL) will also contribute this season. Winters and McGrath may also see time in the secondary, and Henry could see time at tight end.

"We have talked a lot about if you want to be good in this area you have to compete for an OVAC championship," Franke said. "That is something that Toronto has not done in 22 years. That is something this group wants to try and change. It is a possibility.

"We have talked about making the playoffs, but we want to get a home game in the playoffs. We want to get into the playoffs and get a home game in the first round. Last year, we thought we got knocked out a little bit early. This year, we want to get back and see if we can advance."

Toronto has made some adjustments to its schedule this season.

"We have switched up our schedule a little bit," Franke said. "Our schedule is a little bit different. We open with Wellsville. We have not played Wellsville for three years, so it will be nice if we are able to play them this year.

"In Week 2, East Palestine comes to town. We have picked up Oak Glen for Week 5."

Franke thinks his team's schedule will prepare his team to make a run in the playoffs.

"Absolutely, I'm very happy with our schedule," he said. "We have the opportunity to play some small schools early in the season in our first three games. Then, we play Buckeye Local, Oak Glen and Edison before finishing the year against some smaller schools. We are going to test ourselves in the middle of the season. It's going to be good. It will show us where we are at. Then, we will play some schools our size as we build for the playoffs."

One game that has haunted Toronto all offseason is the team's game last year against Edison. The Red Knights led 20-0 only to see the Wildcats storm back and score the final 21 points of the game to pull out an improbable victory.

"We have been thinking a lot about that," Franke said. "We talk a lot about them. We are looking forward to playing them. We get to play them back at home, and we are going to see if we can come away with a victory."

The Red Knights are looking to get off to a good start this season, but it may not be easy as Toronto open's the season with two of its first three games on the road.

"It's huge," Franke said about getting off to a good start. "One of the keys is to get off to a strong start to the season. You want to build up your confidence and build into the rest of the season."

This season Franke will be assisted by Matt Ludewig, Dan Shaffer, Blaine Rawson, Jaret Aubiel, Michael Conlon, Darrick Phillips, Rick Daugherty and Erle Heaton.