By Phil Keren

Correspondent

Since July, the 2026 Streetsboro Rockets have gained a lot of experience facing and battling through adversity.

Friday night was no different as Streetsboro came from behind in the second half to defeat Tallmadge 28-14 and earn a share of the Metro Athletic Conference title with Cloverleaf and Norton.

“For us, this (championship) is one of the sweeter ones,” Streetsboro (8-2, 5-1 in Metro Athletic Conference) Head Coach Pete Thompson said after celebrating his team’s win in their regular-season finale.

It’s sweet because the players and coaches were facing an uphill battle three months ago. A program that typically fields a team of 50 to 60 players found itself with a roster of about 30 to 35 for the 2026 season. The school district had been through the challenges of a levy failure in May, as well as the cancellation and subsequent restoration of junior varsity sports.

“There was a lot of doom and gloom over the program,” Thompson said. “We had some kids transfer out, some kids not come out.”

Thompson said he spoke with his seniors during those first workouts in the summer and asked them about their goals for the season.

“Everybody says they want to win but (I asked them) are you willing to put in the work that it’s going to take, because all of you are going to have to play both ways…we’re going to have to coach that way to get you in shape and get you tough enough to take the rigors of our schedule and be a two-way player, or do you want to have a fun time and let’s see what we can do but lessen the expectations,” Thompson shared.

Thompson said the seniors were ready to take on the rigorous level of preparation.

“They were full-steam ahead of wanting to go forth,” he said. “A lot of tough days this summer. Our coaching staff got after it and our kids put the work in and they were willing to do what was necessary and it wasn’t always easy for us…I think some days they probably didn’t like me very much. It all came back to, (telling the players), ‘this is what you guys wanted.’”

Streetsboro senior running back Logan Fincham said he was confident that this group would find a way to make it work.

“Even with our low numbers and dudes leaving us, I still believed in our guys…I know we weren’t going to have a JV so I know our older guys had to step up and they definitely did,” Fincham said.

In the first half of Friday’s game, the Rockets’ ability to handle adversity faced a stringent test. Streetsboro struggled to find a rhythm offensively. They had four holding penalties, two of which negated touchdowns and two more that wiped out long runs.

The Rockets’ only touchdown of the first half came on an 83-yard punt return by junior wide receiver Dallas Morris. Morris ran through a lane in the middle of the field, cut to the outside at around midfield and sprinted down the sideline for a touchdown that gave his team a 7-0 lead at 9:28 of the first quarter.

“That was huge to start the game,” Thompson said. “I thought our kids had it blocked up really, really well there.”

Another play by Morris set up Streetsboro’s only other score of the first half. Morris intercepted a Tallmadge (5-5, 2-4) pass at the Streetsboro 25-yard line and returned it 25 yards to the 50-yard line.

On third-and-10 from the 50, Fincham broke off a 25-yard run to the Blue Devil 25-yard line. Two plays later, a touchdown run by Fincham was called back due to a holding penalty.

Streetsboro settled for a field goal when senior Logan Sadowski knocked the ball through the uprights from 43 yards away. The Rockets had a 10-0 lead with about four minutes left in the first half.

Just before halftime, Tallmadge junior quarterback Connor Loughry connected on a 50-yard touchdown pass to sophomore wide receiver Elijah Williams. Loughry dropped back and lofted the ball down the middle of the field to Williams, who caught the ball in stride at about the 20-yard line and sped to paydirt.

Even though Streetsboro was winning 10-7 at halftime, Thompson noted Tallmadge “had all the momentum in the world. Our kids were a little shook at halftime. I tried to settle them down. I said, ‘Hey, we’re winning the game.’”

The momentum that the Blue Devils generated at the end of the first half carried over to the start of the second half. The Tallmadge D recorded a three-and-out, and the offense then drove 50 yards in six plays to score and take a 14-10 lead at 7:10 of the third quarter. The scoring march had three plays of 10-plus yards: a 15-yard scamper by junior running back Angelo Gotto; a 14-yard pass from Loughry to senior running back James Robinson; and an 18-yard run by Gotto that he started in the middle and bounced to the outside. Gotto then powered into the end zone from the 1-yard line.

After Tallmadge scored to take the lead, Thompson said, “I was worried that our sideline was going to be taken aback but I think we settled down after that and the penalties stopped.”

While his leader was concerned, Fincham said he and his teammates remained confident.

“We’ve been dealing with adversity all year so it’s not anything new to us,” Fincham said. “All of our heads, they’re still up. No one put their heads down and (we) went to work and pulled through like we always do.”

Following that touchdown which gave Tallmadge a 14-10 advantage, the Rockets’ offense scored on their next three possessions and the defense posted two consecutive three-and- outs.

Sadowski made his second field goal of the game – a 42 yarder- to pull his team within one with 4 minutes left in the third quarter. When the Streetsboro D recorded a three-and-out, Tallmadge booted a 58-yard punt and the Rockets found themselves starting a drive at their own 18-yard line.

On the second play of the drive, Fincham gathered in a screen pass from senior quarterback Colton Cox and broke free for a 37-yard gain. Later in the drive, facing fourth down and 2 from the Blue Devil 46-yard line, Cox faked a handoff to a running back and then pitched the ball to senior running back Noah Hodge who ran around left end for a 14-yard gain. Two straight runs by Fincham moved the ball to the Tallmadge 6-yard line. From there, Cox again faked the handoff but this time kept it, ran outside and turned the corner into the end zone. Streetsboro then picked up the two-point conversion when Morris scored on a reverse. Cox initially handed off to Hodge on a jet sweep design, but Hodge then handed it to Morris as he was running the other way. The touchdown and two-point conversion put the Rockets ahead, 21-14.

Streetsboro continued playing complementary football: Another three-and-out and another long scoring drive by the offense. After running the ball for 10 straight plays (seven from

Fincham), Cox dropped back and threw a spiral to senior Kyle Giacomo, who caught the ball near the corner of the end zone. That touchdown gave Streetsboro a 28-14 lead with 2:37 to play.

Tallmadge’s last scoring effort was thwarted by Morris’ second interception of the game at the Rockets’ 12 yard-line.

Thompson praised the effort displayed by the team’s offensive leaders.

“Logan’s just had such a great year,” he said. “I thought he took this game over in the fourth quarter and just grounded out the tough yards and Colton Cox stepped up…He had some big runs there in the fourth (quarter).”

Thompson also gave kudos to Sadowski for his deep kick-offs and the two 40-plus yard field goals he made. Sadowski has only missed one field goal in the 2026 season: a 47-yarder in the pouring rain against Woodridge.

“He’s been a weapon,” Thompson said. “He’s been All-District twice. I think he should be an All-Ohio kicker for us.”

Thompson noted he was proud of the way his team faced adversity and again passed another important test as they now prepare for the post-season.

“Save for two games this year, every week was some type of adversity happening during a game, but our kids didn’t panic tonight,” he said.

When hearing Fincham talk about the team, it’s clear that the team shares a bond that allows

them to handle the challenges of a 10-game regular season and hopefully a deep run in the playoffs.

“I really love my seniors,” Fincham said. “I’ve been playing with them since youth. All my guys, them blocking for me and me blocking for them. I just love playing with them and had a lot of fun.”