‘Burg to clash with Liberty Center for OHSAA Division V State Championship

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There are many important elements to a bus for it to run correctly.

Engine, transmission, tires, gas, brakes, etc. All of those elements and more have to function properly at the right times for a bus to continue to be usable and in commission.

Over the past 12 years, the Wheelersburg football program has been that bus that has continued to remain in commission — posting one notable and lengthy playoff run after another since 2013.

Now, the bus is fully gassed up and ready to roll to its final destination — Canton.

For the second time in eight years, the boys are back in town — literally and figuratively — in arguably the greatest home of football there is.

Like the 2017 group that came before them those eight years ago, this Wheelersburg football team in 2025 is also undefeated.

Like the 2017 group before it, the 2025 group will also be going up against another undefeated team on the opposite side of it in Liberty Center, who has been one of OHSAA Division V’s best football programs since making the jump up from Division VI to Division V in 2022 — going 14-1 with a state semifinal appearance in 2022 and 15-1 each of the last two seasons with OHSAA Division V State Runner-Up showings in each, with both of its losses being by just seven and 11 points respectively.

It sets up yet another clash of two football heavyweights in one of the greatest football palaces that one could ever hope to play on.

“This is the dream,” Wheelersburg head football coach and athletic director Rob Woodward said. “So many of these seniors lived it as young fans of Wheelersburg when they were nine, 10 years old and on down. They were the ones in grade school writing the letters to the players, traveling to the games and spending that time supporting. They had those dreams. They’ve been practicing throughout their junior high and high school careers with the goal and aspiration of making it to this state championship game. They’ve checked all the boxes here in 2025 and have done everything they’ve needed to do. They’ve earned their spot to the ‘ship, and here we are.”

Continuity and establishing a clear blueprint has been the key to success for both programs.

For Woodward, having the opportunity to simply play for another shot at history is a thrill. Having never played in a high school playoff game during his own playing days at Gallia Academy, the thought of taking Wheelersburg deep into the playoffs with the opportunity to play against, and in, some of Ohio’s most hallowed teams and grounds was his utmost goal.

But it was not a goal for himself, personally, as much as it was for his players. Because of that, the veteran head coach of 18 seasons has helped lead this 15-man senior class to their 56th career football game as a part of the Wheelersburg football program — an average of 14 games per season.

“I’m excited, because this is what I always wanted for high school kids,” Woodward said. “I never got to play in a high school playoff game. My goal as a football coach was to create as many playoff games as I could for young men, and ultimately, to get a chance to do this. I couldn’t be happier for or more proud of them.”

With eight 10-win seasons and 10 trips to the OHSAA Division V Regional Finals in the past 13 seasons, Woodward has been able to cultivate an unprecedented level of playoff success never before seen in Scioto County.

He, however, is quick to credit the longevity of his staff.

Many of the same assistant coaching figures that were around for the push to the 2017 OHSAA Division V State Championship team — including Chad Johnson, Dusty Salyers, Steve Sutton, Jerod Tilley, Bryson Williams and Jonathan Eaton among them — are guys who continue to cultivate and build on the culture that has made Wheelersburg football an electric name statewide. Wheelersburg boys basketball head coach Alex Prater is also an assistant coach on the football staff, as is Jordan Howard, Nathan Fannin, Kody Kennedy, Rob Skidmore and Jacob Wesney.

“Our coaching staff does such a good job at preparing the guys,” Woodward said. “I’m blessed. I’ve got a bunch of quality head coaches. We’ve got guys that’s been here since before I was. I’ve been here 23 years total as an assistant and as a head coach, but they all understand the game and we all feed off of each other. We all develop one another in order to put the best product on the field that we can. They’re great with the kids — they’re developing and educating them. I’m just really proud of this staff and really proud of the players. I’m proud to be here.”

On the Liberty Center side, the Tigers’ head coach, Casey Mohler — a 1997 alum of Liberty Center — has been a part of the program for the last 25 years, serving on staff since 2000. In 2006, Mohler was elevated to defensive coordinator under longtime Liberty Center head coach Rex Lingruen — then was elevated to head coach himself after Lingruen’s retirement after the 2016 season.

In Mohler’s first season in 2017, Liberty Center went 7-3 and didn’t make the playoffs in the old eight-team per region playoff format. The next year, however, Mohler elevated the Tigers to a 12-2 overall record and the OHSAA Division V State Semifinals — with a loss to eventual state champion Orrville occurring at that juncture.

Liberty Center then made the state semis again at the OHSAA Division VI level in 2021 before moving back up to Division V in 2022.

Since Mohler’s tenure with the Tigers began, Liberty Center is 91-16 — with five consecutive state semifinal appearances and six overall along with the two OHSAA State Championship Game appearances in 2023 and 2024 under his watch — due to an offense that shows multiple looks and variations but is precise in what it runs, and is balanced behind a large line whose most notable presence is 6-5, 270-pound Kellen Wymer, a junior who is committed to Ohio State and is ranked as the 211th best player in the junior class.

“Liberty Center understands this process just as well as we do,” Woodward said. “You can tell by how they are coached that they are having fun playing the game. They have a tremendous scheme and system that they run, a challenging offense in terms of their overall formations and things that they utilize. Their offense is very consistent, very patient and is accepting of making that short-yardage gain consistently, but their offense also consists of backs that are hard to bring down, they’ve been able to make big plays, and then they’ve really been able to make a lot of turnovers from a defensive perspective. Then, they capitalize on those turnovers. They’re going to bring a lot of challenges to us, but we will bring a lot of challenges to them as well. We’re going to control the things that we can control and try to recognize what kind of things that they do and look to negate those things as much as possible in this game. They’ve definitely earned their spot here, and our team has earned it as well.”

Wheelersburg most certainly has earned it.

One could look no further than the Pirates’ 24-10 victory over Cardinal Mooney in the OHSAA Division V State Semifinals — where Wheelersburg turned the Cardinals back three separate times in the red zone by picking off two passes and forcing a field goal on a third drive. The Pirates forced four turnovers without committing a single miscue themselves in the contest.

Rushing-wise, Wheelersburg controlled matters as Elijah Brown carried the football 22 times for 110 yards while Braylon Rucker rushed for an additional 125 yards on 21 carries as the Pirates ultimately ran for 239 yards as a team and controlled the clock, as well as time of possession, effectively throughout.

“We talk about it all the time to our players,” Woodward said. “We just tell them, ‘We can design the outline. We can lay out the road map. We can provide you with the bus. We can put tires on the bus. You players are driving it. You’re the ones that are guiding this in the direction that it needs to go and making the decisions that we need to have out there on the field. Each of our 15 seniors have done a terrific job driving the bus in the direction that it needs to go — we as coaches just want to put gas in it. We can give those motivational speeches, and say, ‘Hey, let’s go into four-wheel drive on this part of the trip,’ or, ‘This is what we need to do, it’s a little more rocky of a path,’ or, ‘Hey, we need to put our foot on the gas here on this.’ We help to control some of those aspects. But the players are who are really driving the bus and steering the things in the direction that it needs to go. They’re doing a great job.”

For evidence of that, look no further than the team captains themselves.

There’s Elijah Brown, who after emerging into an All-Ohio caliber player as a junior, has completely broken out as a senior to the tune of 1,047 yards and 20 rushing touchdowns on 141 carries offensively — to go along with 53.5 tackles, 2.5 sacks and two interceptions defensively.

“It’s truly a privilege to be practicing in December,” Brown said. “Not many teams ever get to do this, and we’ve been able to do it this year. It’s a great privilege to be out here with the guys. At the end of the year, one of the hardest parts is saying goodbye to your guys. We’ve earned the right to spend extra weeks with our guys, and we’re proud to be together.”

There’s Ison Emnett, who started his career as a skill position player — but sacrificed to make the team better and moved down to play along the offensive and defensive fronts, where he has since become a force. Emnett, the OHSAA Division V Southeast District’s Defensive Player of the Year, has 53 tackles, four sacks, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries. Emnett credited guys like fellow team captain Hunter Henderson, who himself sacrificed for the betterment of the team by waiting his turn for the last three seasons, as one of the main reasons that Wheelersburg has been as successful as it has.

“So many people have stepped up in spots during the season,” Emnett said. “I know that Hunter didn’t get a lot of playing time last year or in previous years, but he’s stepped it up. He’s been great for us, absolutely phenomenal on the edge, and Elijah’s holding strong himself on the opposite edge. It’s all really come together so well for us, and we just love being with each other. I think it’s great.”

There’s Henderson, who has enjoyed that breakout season that Emnett referred to in the tune of 76 tackles and a team-leading 9.5 sacks as a disruptive figure that, at 6-4, 170, is a matchup problem, to say the least, for opposing offenses with his closing speed, his awareness defensively and his football smarts.

“We have a great defensive line,” Henderson said. “The linebackers couldn’t do anything that we do without the D-line. Our success is a result of our mentality that we carry, and we understand that. We’ve done a great job of that, and that’s why we’ve been putting together the successful results that we have been. It’s enjoyable to be a part of for all of us.”

Then lastly, there’s the imposing figure of Ryan Meeker up front. A promising talent with worlds of potential, Meeker’s work during the offseason has really shown up, as Meeker, who weighed over 330 pounds as a sophomore, has dropped down to 265 pounds while maintaining every bit of the physical play — and adding to that as well as needed quickness on the defensive line — that has allowed Wheelersburg to blow opposing offenses up.

Meeker, the team’s center on offense and a nose guard on defense, has 17.5 tackles defensively in a position that is more known for helping control gaps for the defensive linebackers to flow effectively to the football and make plays.

“We’ve had a lot of guys step up since our sophomore year,” Meeker said. “We’ve been working towards it, and those guys who have been getting reps and filling in have really stepped up when they’ve been called upon.”

Beyond the effort that the Wheelersburg football program puts out on a daily basis, one thing’s for certain — there will be a fan following, and a significant one, wherever the Pirate faithful goes. So it’s time to gas up the bus.

“Pirate Nation always shows out,” Woodward said. “They show out and they follow their teams. They follow their teams with softball winning the state championship, boys soccer going to the final four this year, girls basketball going to the final four in 2023 — no matter what the sport or activity, Pirate Nation shows up and supports our kids. They’re part of the excellence that we try to uphold in terms of student-athletes excelling academically and athletically and giving their best.”

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