The Glenville Tarblooders pulled off an impressive state championship win last December; the only question on my mind now is, can they do it again next year?

The Tarblooders went 13-3 in the 23-24 season in spite of facing some very tough competition. That included teams like the nationally-recognized IMG Academy out of Florida and Dinwiddie High School out of Virginia, and high-performing Ohio teams like Archbishop Hoban High School and Avon High School. The Tarblooders had one mission, and that was to go back-to-back after their state championship win the prior season.

What the Glenville Tarblooders did for the city of Cleveland is spectacular. Glenville made history by being the first CMSD school to win a state title. Running back D’Shawntae Jones led Glenville in rushing yards with 161 yards. And quarterback Ruel Tomlinson threw for 207 passing yards and rushed for 83 yards. The key part of the game was their offense, and they absolutely dominated.

Glenville showed up ready to defend its state title, and won all five rounds of the state high school playoffs late last year. They played teams like The Bath Wildcats from Lima, Ohio and The Napoleon Wildcats from Napoleon, Ohio. Glenville Head Coach Ted Ginn winning both back-to-back titles shows how disciplined the team is. Just one month after winning their first state title, he had the players go straight back to practice; that showed hard work and discipline. No days off. Ginn is the founder of Ginn Academy and is the father of former pro football player Ted Ginn Jr.

Winning that second title proves that Glenville is one of the best high school football teams in Ohio. Defensively Glenville destroyed Alter making it difficult to put up points.

Glenville showed no fear going 5 for 5 on fourth down in the 4th quarter. It’s clear that the Glenville Tarblooders rocked it this year, with a convincing 38-to-3 win in the championship bout. Even though I'm graduating this year, I'm looking forward to watching how they do next year.