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As a player and coach, Bert Bathiany has enjoyed a lot of success, victory and championship.
As a varsity coach, Bathiany helped two football programs achieve rare success. As a high school head football coach, he doesn’t have to do that, just help reclaim past glory.
Bathiany is his first preseason as The Moellers football head coach. He inherits a team that went 13-2 last season and lost a heartbreaker to Springfield in the OHSAA Division I state semifinals.
He replaces Mark Elder, who went 27-12 in three seasons with Moeller with two regional championships. Bathiany is Moeller’s fourth head coach since the departure of John Rodenberg following the 2017 season. Rodenberg had won two state championships with the Crusaders.
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Coach Vanhin obviously did a phenomenal job and they had a phenomenal staff the last three years and I came into a program that had a lot already established, Bathiany said. And then I just add my own little tweaks to it. And our big thing is maintaining momentum because we’re a momentum program and we want to maintain that momentum.
Bathiany comes to Moeller from Lexington Catholic High School, where he led the varsity football team to its first 10 wins since 2015.
His staff at Moeller is made up of veterans from Moeller’s staff and coaches hired by Bathiany.
I think Coach B really raised the bar this year, senior Jordan Marshall said. The younger guys just helping them keep everyone accountable to the leaders. They know when their number is called, they are ready.
Bathiany was a standout football player at Highlands High School. The 2005 graduate was captain of the football team that won the Kentucky state championship in 2004.
As the varsity coach, Bathiany helped Tiffin University to a 9-1 season and a conference championship in 2019. The Dragons earned their first-ever berth in the NCAA Division II playoffs and came close to upsetting No. 2 seed Kutztown in the region in the first round.
Between 2013 and 2018, Bathiany served at his alma mater, Denison University. During that time, Denison rose to prominence in the North Coast Athletic Conference, winning 30 games (.731), including the 2018 NCAC championship (the school’s first conference title since 1986) and advancing to the 2018 NCAA Division III playoffs.
The transition to the new coaches has gone really well, senior Jewett Hayes said. We’re getting really close, we’re getting to know him and it’s been really smooth. What they have done and how they have done it, like all new languages. Mixing it has gone really well.
Bathiany inherits a roster with several Division I college prospects, led by Michigan commit Marshall at running back and Notre Dame commit Karson Hobbs at defensive back.
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“Anytime you have a lot of guys that have played a lot of snaps, especially in Ohio and the GCL, that’s valuable,” Bathiany said.
Marshall is coming off a season where he was named the Ohio Gatorade Football Player of the Year. He ran for more than 1,900 yards and 30 touchdowns to help Moeller win its second straight Division I regional title. Marshall was nominated for the Mr. Ohio Football award.
Our biggest strength is our backfield, Bathiany said. That’s where we bring back the most experience between quarterbacks, running backs and tight ends. And then on the defensive side of the ball, it’s probably our front seven.
The Crusaders have veterans in all position groups.
We installed a new offense, a new defense, so I feel like the defense has been able to come together as a unit, said senior Drew Robinson, who will play defense this season after being the quarterback in 2022. We have to learn and really understand so everyone can learn each position.
Moeller’s schedule is usually a challenge full of championship-caliber teams. This fall will be no different as the Crusaders face one of the toughest spots in recent memory.
Moeller faces four reigning state champions, all on the road. The Crusaders will face three-time defending Indiana 6A champion Center Grove in Indianapolis, Indiana 4A champion East Central, Michigan 3A titlist Martin Luther King in Detroit and Ohio Division I state champion Lakewood St. Edward.
Moeller also hosts Indiana big-school powers Indianapolis Ben Davis and Fort Wayne Bishop Dwenger, as well as perennial state contender Cleveland St. Ignatius.
We could always argue that one of the GCL members has the tightest schedule in the country, Bathiany said. Even when I was in college and watching highlight tapes of GCL guys that always came up. Our league is really, really good. We were just trying to find competitive games. We like playing against good teams. We want to compete against the best, and that’s what they’ve been doing here since 1960.
In Ohio’s expanded playoffs, a loss or two during the season won’t derail a team’s chances at a state title. In that respect, it’s similar to Kentucky’s playoff structure, which Bathiany has plenty of experience with.
Marshall said: Just take it one game at a time. Everyone makes the playoffs, so make sure we play our best ball going into Week 10 and the playoffs.
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Sources 2/ https://www.cincinnati.com/story/sports/high-school/ohio-high-school/2023/07/20/new-moeller-head-football-coach-bert-bathiany-keeps-high-standards/70434077007/ The mention sources can contact us to remove/changing this article |
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