Heading into Saturday’s midday 4A final between East Central, these two teams made their way to Lucas Oil playing two different versions of football. 

Led by running back Josh Ringer, a Miami (OH) commit, East Central has put up an impressive 49.9 points per game to pair with 321 rushing yards per game. 

For Northwood, they air it out with the arm of Owen Roeder to two of the best athletes in the state in NiTareon Tuggle, a Georgia commit, and JoZiah Edmond, a Michigan commit. Edmond also had five interceptions for the Panthers heading into the championship matchup. 

Northwood received the opening kickoff and immediately displayed their spread offense coming out in a quad look on the first play of the game. Roeder was able to connect with running back Landon Perry on a tunnel screen for 18 yards before coming up just short on fourth and one to give the ball up at the 40 yard line. 

On their first offensive possession, East Central got going with hard earned yards by Ringer, Dylan Maxwell and Ryan Brotherton before Ringer would fumble short of the line to gain on fourth and three to give the ball back to the Panthers. 

Roeder would get things going promptly as he found Tuggle for a gain of 14 before the Trojans closed up the passing lanes on the next three plays resulting in a pooch punt. 

On the ensuing drive, Ringer would continue to run hard getting three, four and five yards a carry but nothing big yet. Ringer would break for 20 yards to get the Trojans inside the 15 before quarterback Cole Burton was able to sneak it in from four yards out to open up the scoring with a 7-0 Trojan lead.

On the succeeding kickoff, Tuggle would return it 31 yards out to the 35 before taking the top off the defense for the 65 yard touchdown reception from Roeder. 

With the game tied 7-7, East Central received the ball and got right to work offensively. Ringer got things going with a 22 yard rush before Brotherton broke free for a 30 yard touchdown down the sideline to take a 14-7 lead. 

After the quick flurry of scores to start the second quarter, Northwood looked to even the score once again, but a fourth down interception by linebacker Brayden Rouse would put those hopes to rest promptly. 

With possession once more before halftime, East Central went right back to the run where Ringer continued to chip away as the offense moved down the field. A shot at the end zone by Burton would go long, but a defensive pass interference would move the Trojans closer to the endzone. Ringer would take advantage of the short field and stroll in from 12 yards out to put the Trojans up 21-7. 

In the waning seconds of the first half, Northwood was able to drive down to the 40 yard line where they would line up a kickoff attempt by Dominic De Freitas which came up just short from 57 yards. 

Coming out of the locker room, the Trojans picked up where they left off and got right back to the ground game with Ringer. The front runner for Mr. Football kept running hard until he eventually strolled in for a four yard touchdown and his second of the day. 

Getting the ball for the first time nearly seven minutes into the half, the Panthers would start by running the ball on first and second down before airing it out to Tuggle to get the sticks moving. Sticking with the run, Perry and Roeder would get gains of 28 and 16, respectively as the Panthers worked their way inside the 10. 

As Roeder was ready to accept the 4th and goal snap, the ball was air mailed over his head resulting in a frenzy to the ball and a blindly thrown interception by Roeder. 

Back on the offensive, Ringer kept ringing with a 29 yard carry before the Northwood defense would tighten up at the start of the final quarter and force a punt. 

Down 28-7, Northwood just kept spiraling as Roeder would sail a post route into the hands of Moses Wheat who would race the interception into the endzone to extend the Trojan lead 35-7. 

As the Panthers tried to salvage the game, they would once again be shut down offensively as a failed fourth down conversion gave the ball right back to the Trojans. 

On the offensive end, the Trojans continued to run their way down the field, giving the ball to Ringer when they could. Ringer would find the end zone from 24 yards as he secured his third score of the day as the Trojans extended their lead 42-7. 

As the minutes dwindled on the 2023 4A season, Tuggle would continue to shine as he got the Panthers all the way inside the 15 on the final drive before coming down with a touchdown to make it 42-14 with 35 seconds left. 

Before this one could be officially done, Northwood would recover the onside kick and Roeder would throw an interception targeting Tuggle as this one officially finished up with a singular Cole Burton kneel down as East Central repeated as 4A Champs. 

Game Awards

Impact Play of The Game: Dylan Rouse interception before halftime- it would make sense that one of Ringers 251 yards or three touchdowns would be the most impactful play of the game, however this Rouse interception is what turned all the tides. Northwood had the ball in the middle of the second quarter down just seven points and had scored on a Tuggle touchdown reception the previous drive. It was originally returned for an interception, but a block in the back negated the return. Nonetheless, it set up Josh Ringer’s first touchdown of the day and helped the Trojans pull away.

Unit of The Game: East Central Linebackers- Connor Kuhn: five solo tackles and two tackles for loss, Dylan Maxwell: five solo tackles, a pass break up and 15 yards rushing on offense, Brayden Rouse: five solo tackles, two tackles for loss, a sack and an interception. With Rouse leading the way, this linebacker unit shut down the run game early to prevent Northwood from building off the run with any play action shots.

“It is amazing, we brought a big huge crowd [with us],” Rouse said. “They have supported us all season and it is awesome to have them here. Our defense, honestly, we are just dogs. We work hard together and everybody does their job.” 

Player of The Game: Josh Ringer- 34 attempts, 251 yards, three touchdowns. I mean, come on. Who else would it be if not the man that finishes his senior campaign with 2880 rushing yards and 55 rushing touchdowns. The Mr. Football is his to win and he cemented his legacy with yet another amazing championship game performance.

The incredible run game and savvy blocking are not the only things that helped this Trojan team to a state title. Many championship teams in sports often have a fun ‘thing’ that has helped carry them throughout a grueling schedule. For this Trojan team it was a TikTok trend they did after every postseason victory.  


“At first it started off as a joke,” Ringer said. “It kind of just started blowing up, no one really expected it but we all think it is funny.” 

One of the main characters in the TikTok videos and a captain of the Trojans, quarterback Cole Burton, was the only one on Saturday to set a record. For the fewest passing yards in a 4A State Championship game. 

“He is a great leader and a great passer,” Ringer said. “It just was not in the game plan, they had some great defensive backs so if he got the chance to throw more he would have had more yards.”

Ringer will be heading to Miami (OH) with 6600 total yards and 118 total touchdowns in his four year career at East Central. 

“I am blessed to have a coach like [Jake Meiners],” Ringer said. “It is amazing [to be able to perform], I could not have done it without any of my teammates. My offensive line, I have not seen them play better.”