Get ready, football fanatics! The high school football scene is about to get a whole lot brighter with the upcoming national title game between Corner Canyon and St. Frances Academy. This isn't just any game; it's the inaugural Overtime Nationals championship, and the broadcast team is top-notch!
According to reports, the dynamic duo of Joe Tessitore and Dan Orlovsky will be calling the plays for this epic showdown. The game will be aired on ESPN2, so you won't miss a second of the action.
The game is set to take place at Under Armour Stadium in Baltimore on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. Eastern Time.
"This is a significant moment for Overtime. We are building Overtime Nationals into an event that football fans across the country will circle on their calendar every year," said Marc Kohn, Overtime Sports' president of content and media. "A game of this magnitude demands top on-air talent. Joe Tessitore and Dan Orlovsky are two of the premier voices in football. We are fired up that they are excited by the long term vision and are joining us as we launch this property."
On the field, this matchup is a clash of titans. Corner Canyon boasts one of the nation's highest-scoring offenses, averaging a staggering 48.2 points per game. They'll be facing St. Frances Academy's rock-solid defense, which has allowed a mere 67 points through nine games.
Corner Canyon, which began in 2013, has already produced some impressive talent, including NFL players like Jaxson Dart and Zach Wilson. And that's not all, they have several Division I prospects, including Texas A&M commit Helaman Casuga, and Weston Briggs, who was the star of the UHSAA 6A title game, leading the way with 171 rushing yards and four touchdowns. St. Frances Academy counters with two five-star defenders: Maryland commit Zion Elee and Alabama pledge Jireh Edwards.
But here's where it gets controversial... Tessitore highlighted how prep high schools have become the breeding grounds for Power 4 universities.
"In the last generation where you have the hyper scrutiny and attention on recruiting, programs have funneled their way to be national programs," Tessitore said. "The prestigious academic boarding schools of Connecticut are now where national recruits go because they have post graduates and the SEC is recruiting Avon Old Farms and Choate and Loomis Chafee and Andover, Exeter, and Deerfield Academy [in Massachusetts] to the schools in North Jersey, Georgia, Texas, Florida, and California West Coast. Add what we see with Corner Canyon in Utah—these are powerhouses where kids know that if you play at those places you’re talking about 10, 15, 18 Division-1 recruits a year. You’re just starting to see a funneling of talent."
Many of the schools Tessitore mentioned are part of the New England Preparatory School Athletic Council (NEPSAC), with Avon Old Farms and Choate Rosemary Hall leading the pack, ranked as the No. 1 and No. 3 teams in Connecticut, according to the Massey Ratings.
And this is the part most people miss... Keeping up with high school football action is easier than ever. The Rivals High School Scoreboard provides real-time updates and final scores from across the nation, so you won't miss a single play.
What do you think about the rise of these powerhouse high school programs? Are they changing the landscape of college football recruiting? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
