CANTON — Brandon White may look like a sophomore, but he sure doesn’t play like one.
The 5-foot-8, 175-pounder ran for 235 yards and three touchdowns on a whopping 32 attempts to carry Lakewood St. Edward to a 31-21 Division I state championship victory over Springfield on Friday night at Canton’s Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium.
It marked the third straight year these two teams met in the state championship game, with the same result each time.
Senior quarterback Casey Bullock got the No. 1-ranked Eagles off on the right foot with a 13-yard touchdown run midway through the first quarter. When Edwards followed with a 20-yard scoring jaunt just four minutes later, it looked like a rout had begun.
But Springfield senior Da’Shawn Martin scored a TD to pull his team within 14-7 early in the second quarter. Jayvin “Bay Bay” Norman’s 1-yard TD run on fourth-and-goal tied the game at 14-14.
White countered with a 3-yard touchdown blast to make it 21-14 with 1:39 showing before halftime.
Springfield responded though, when Norman returned the ensuing kickoff 93 yards for a game-tying touchdown, establishing a Division I title-game record in the process.
The Wildcats (10-6) had a chance to take the lead into halftime, yet the Eagles (15-1) stopped Brent Upshaw short of the goal line at the 1 as the first-half clock expired.
St. Edward got the better of it in the second half, particularly in the fourth quarter.
Junior kicker Kellen Moyer nailed a 36-yard field goal midway through the final period, and White finished it on a 3-yard TD plunge with 1:27 remaining.
The Eagles controlled the game statistically, enjoying the advantage in first downs (21-14), rushing yards (305-151), and total offense (336-248).
St. Edward beat the Wildcats 23-13 in 2021 and earned a 28-14 victory last season.
Springfield started the season 3-5, winning seven straight games to claim a fifth straight regional championship.
The Wildcats were the 12th-seed in Region 2, and became the highest-seeded team to ever advance to a state championship game since the playoffs expanded three years ago.