Hoover 30 - Akron Buchtel 0

August 22, 2025

Steve Doerschuk, Canton Repository

NORTH CANTON — The Hoover Vikings and Akron Buchtel Griffins opened their high school football seasons against each other Friday night at Memorial Stadium.

The Vikings shut out the Griffins 30-0.

Hoover moved the ball at will and played great defense through most of the game.

A year after beating the Vikings, Buchtel head coach Bryan Williams was impressed. “They play hard, they execute, and they were the more disciplined team,” Williams said. “Everything they do, they do together. You don’t have to have the most talented players. If you have the most disciplined players, that trumps everything.”

Senior quarterback John Collins looked sharp as he distributed the ball among eight receivers and running backs. “He played within his game plan,” Williams said.

Collins said a few Hoover players stood out. “No. 54, Jack Ziarko,  is a tough lineman on both sides,” he said. “On defense, they threw him in on third down, and he got pressure. 

“They have some pieces. If they stay healthy, they should do some things in the Federal League.”

Collins said Hoover’s new quarterbacks, former McKinley and Bowling Green standout Ryan Henry, has made a difference. “He’s really helped evolve my overall game and helped with my mechanics,” Collins said.

Hoover head coach Brian Baum liked most of what he saw. “Defensively we did what we came out to do,” he said. “They had a young quarterback. We knew we had to get hits on him, and we did.”

The Vikings could have put the game away early had they not lost two fumbles.

“We’ve got to hold on to the football,” Baum said. “That kept them in the game, and last year it cost us the game.”

Williams thinks Buchtel will be a strong team.

“Our guys will not play like they played today again,” he said. “They are upset with themselves.”

Hoover is coming off a 6-5 season, while Buchtel went 4-7 a year ago. Each team’s season ended in the opening round of the OHSAA state playoffs.