Marietta’s Jason Schob very familiar with all-star classic | News, Sports, Jobs

Times file photo
Marietta football coach Jason Schob, right, greets players during a practice during the 2017 Battle Against Cystic Fibrosis Football Classic at Don Drumm Stadium.

Few people have been more involved with the Battle Against Cystic Fibrosis Football Classic over the years than Marietta head coach Jason Schob.

Schob, who is entering his ninth year at the helm for the Tigers, played in the BACF game, has been an assistant coach three times, and was the Ohio all-stars’ head coach in 2017. He’s been tasked to lead the Buckeye State again in Friday’s game, an opportunity he’s excited for. Kickoff is set for 7:10 p.m. at Bill Hanlin Stadium in St. Marys.

“It’s a win-win,” Schob said. “It gets kids one more opportunity to play — some will go on to the next level, but for some it’s the last go-around. It’s neat to get them the experience. Most importantly, you’re giving back to a great cause.”

The BACF game, which is back for its 27th installment after being canceled in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, was created to raise money and awareness in the battle against cystic fibrosis.

“At Thursday’s practice, (St. Marys) coach (Jodi) Mote is putting together a presentation on cystic fibrosis,” Schob said, “just to really give them an idea of what they’re playing for.”

West Virginia leads the all-time series, 15-11, but Ohio is on a three-game winning streak and will be looking for another win.

Schob will have a strong assistant coaching staff at his disposal for this year’s game.

Fort Frye head coach Eric Huck and former Warren and Marietta head coach, and Schob’s father, Andy, will be calling the offense together.

“My dad joked around that he’s coming out of retirement and coaching one more game, then going back into retirement,” Schob laughed.

Garrett Davis, Schob’s defensive coordinator for the Tigers, will call the defensive plays.

“I’m actually delegating a lot,” he said. “It’ll be nice just to sort of organize things, coach the kids up and let (the coaches) sort of run the offense and defense.”

Also on Schob’s staff will be his younger brother, Evan, who played at Fort Frye, and his brother-in-law Tate Linder, who played at Wirt County and Glenville State.

Schob’s roster will feature two former Tigers in Zach Stachera and Jeremiah Saffell. Both guys will get snaps on the offense and defensive lines.

“It’s always a neat experience to coach those kids one more time,” Schob said.

A trio of Warriors — JT Rice (linebacker), Gabe Bookman (defensive lineman) and Dennis Pettey (tight end/linebacker) — will be on the team. Fort Frye will be represented by lineman Hunter Kesselring while a pair of Frontier Cougars — J.D. Schmidt (quarterback/linebacker) and Tanner Bills (receiver/defensive back) will be on the team.

River will have the most players with four — Brody Longwell (receiver/linebacker), Austin Creamer (running back/linebacker), Avery Creamer (running back/linebacker) and Zack Hocutt (kicker/punter).

There also will be players from Tri-Valley (Grant Dal Ponte), Meadowbrook (Josh Hupp), Barnesville (Spencer Bliss, Gavin Carpenter), West Muskingum (Jeremiah Miller), Buckeye Trail (Franko Rome, Dakota Milliken), Beallsville (Brandon Louden), New Philadelphia (Matthew Beach, Jadan Lowery), Ridgewood (Zander Stroup), Nelsonville-York (Tucker Levering, Nathan Martin), Eastern (Jayden Evans and Bryce Newland) and Monroe Central (Mike Bunning).

Jordan Holland can be reached at jholland@mariettatimes.com.

OHIO

Head coach: Jason Schob, Marietta

Assistant coaches: Eric Huck, Andy Schob, Garrett Davis, Jeff Davis, Tate Linder, Evan Schob, Brendan Mullholland

Roster

No. Name School Pos. Hgt. Wgt.

2 Grant Dal Ponte Tri-Valley WR/LB 5-10 170

6 JT Rice Warren LB 5-6 170

6 Josh Hupp Meadowbrook QB 6-0 200

11 J.D. Schmidt Frontier QB/LB 5-8 180

12 Spencer Bliss Barnesville WR/DB 5-11 170

17 Brody Longwell River WR/LB 6-2 185

18 Jeremiah Miller West Muskingum WR/DB 6-0 180

20 Franko Rome Buckeye Trail RB/DB 5-9 170

28 Brandon Louden Beallsville WR/DB 6-3 180

35 Austin Creamer River RB/LB 6-0 185

36 Avery Creamer River RB/LB 5-11 180

37 Tanner Bills Frontier WR/DB 5-11 170

42 Matthew Beach New Philadelphia TE/LB 6-0 190

46 Zack Hocutt River K/P 6-0 165

46 Zander Stroup Ridgewood WR/DB 5-11 170

50 Gabe Bookman Warren DL 6-5 275

50 Zach Stachera Marietta OL 6-0 300

51 Tucker Levering Nelsonville-York OL/DL 6-0 230

52 Dakota Milliken Buckeye Trail OL/DL 5-10 250

54 Gavin Carpenter Barnesville OL/DL 5-9 250

56 Hunter Kesselring Fort Frye OL/DL 6-2 230

58 Jeremiah Saffell Marietta OL/DL 5-10 225

60 Jadan Lowery New Philadelphia OL/DL 6-5 225

78 Nathan Martin Nelsonville-York OL/DL 6-0 185

80 Jayden Evans Eastern RB/LB 6-0 190

83 Bryce Newland Eastern RB/LB 5-10 165

87 Michael Bunning Monroe Central WR/LB 5-8 160

88 Dennis Pettey Warren TE/LB 6-1 220