BEREA, Ohio — Midway through Deshaun Watson’s second 7-on-7 football invitational tournament, Glenville coach Ted Ginn Sr. and his players surrounded him near the main field at Berea-Midpark High School’s Roehm Athletic Complex.
Ginn extended his hand, which held a case with one of the Tarblooders’ 2022 state championship rings.
Watson paid for them, and Wednesday offered a chance to say “thank you.”
Ginn added, “Hopefully this will bring good luck to you.”
Watson smiled and bobbed his head in approval as Glenville players cheered him on. Later, the Browns quarterback wrote, “Appreciate you @TarblooderFB 4EVER LOVE!!!” on the social media platform X.
“Our district wanted to show our appreciation,” Ginn said afterward. “People really don’t have to help, but he saw that we were in need as a city school and a program. He supported us in getting our rings, so why not him have a ring?”
Glenville has now won two straight OHSAA Division IV state championships, starting with its 2022 title run that culminated with a 26-6 victory against Cincinnati Wyoming in the finals at Canton.
The Tarblooders followed that up last year with a 38-3 romp of Kettering Archbishop Alter.
They reached the finals of Watson’s 7-on-7 tournament for the second straight year, too. Last year, they fell to Archbishop Hoban in the finals of Watson’s first event, which he organized with the help of the Browns and his own Deshaun Watson Foundation.
On Wednesday in Berea, Kirtland topped Glenville in the finals of the 16-team event with a fourth-down touchdown pass and two-point conversion in the final minute. The Hornets, also a defending state champion in Division VI, upset Glenville after the Tarblooders beat them in last year’s semifinals in Akron.
Contact sports reporter Matt Goul on X (@mgoul), Threads (@mgoul) or email ([email protected]).