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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Challenge attracts an elite field to Ohio

Usa Today The Spokesman-Review

More than a year after they were invited to play in the Kirk Herbstreit Ohio vs. USA Challenge, the fifth-ranked Stags of DeMatha High will open their season Sunday far from their Hyattsville, Md., home when they take on No. 4 St. Xavier of Cincinnati.

“I got a phone call last year from them saying they wanted us to play last year,” DeMatha coach Bill McGregor says. “We couldn’t then because our schedule was set. But I told them the following year, we had an opening.”

That opening has set up what appears to be the Challenge’s featured game. Set for a noon kickoff on ESPN at the University of Cincinnati’s Nippert Stadium, it’s one of 11 games on the event’s schedule.

Eight will be played today, four at Nippert Stadium and four at the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Fawcett Stadium in Canton, Ohio. All three Sunday will be in Cincinnati.

DeMatha and St. Xavier are two of seven teams ranked in the USA TodaySuper 25 that are in the Challenge, which attempts to match up some of the nation’s top teams with the best from Ohio.

“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience that a lot of kids won’t have a chance to do again,” said McGregor.