CLEVELAND, Ohio — Kirtland had only two football playoff appearances in program history before Tiger LaVerde took over in 2006 as coach.
Now, it has four state championships.
![](https://www.cleveland.com/resizer/v2/https%3A%2F%2Fhssn-media.advance.net%2Fcleveland.com%2Fnews%2F48b6ae3a99a2c208aac09b1eed73bba4%2FTigerLaVerde.jpg?auth=af84c95d484509c5ac9901286d4c33873c2e4bf3f098dcb1a57e38a14c5c1e68&width=500&quality=90)
LaVerde (Kirtland athletics)
LaVerde guided the Hornets to their fourth OHSAA crown since 2011 with an undefeated season — his third unbeaten season in 13 years — to continue an uncanny run around Northeast Ohio.
LaVerde is the cleveland.com Coach of the Year for the 2018 season, which culminated with Kirtland's 16-7 victory against two-time defending Division VI state champion Maria Stein Marion Local.
This run could be argued as Kirtland's best, defensively.
The Hornets (15-0) gave up double-digit points only twice in regional final and state semifinal victories against Mogadore and Beverly Fort Frye. Seven times, Kirtland won with a shutout.
Four teams in the cleveland.com/Plain Dealer seven-county coverage area won state titles this year, and only Kirtland finished the season undefeated.
Coach of the Year finalists: Tony Gotto, Barberton; Justin Todd, Wadsworth; Shaq Washington, Maple Heights
Contact sports reporter Matt Goul on Twitter (@mgoul) or email ([email protected]). Or log in and leave a message below in the comments section.