Game #	Date	Opponent	Site	Score	W/L	Record
1	8/25/07	Lakota West	UC	21-14	W	1-0
2	9/1/07	Charlotte (NC) Independence	UC	41-34, OT	W	2-0
3	9/7/07	Oak Hills	Away	21-16	W	3-0
4	9/14/07	La Salle	Away	28-19	L	3-1 (0-1)
5	9/22/07	Lakewood St. Edward	Away	10-7	L	3-2
6	9/28/07	St. Xavier	Away	18-0	L	3-3 (0-2)
7	10/5/07	Moeller	Home	49-33	W	4-3 (1-2)
8	10/12/07	Covington Catholic	Home	35-6	W	5-3
9	10/20/07	Cleveland Benedictine	Home	49-34	W	6-3
10	10/26/07	Western Hills	Home	49-0	W	7-3

Playoffs

 

The 2007 Elder Panthers took the field at UC for Game 1 against Lakota West led by an experienced quarterback in John Groene, a bonafide star in Notre Dame-bound Kyle Rudolph, and a team hungry for a return to the payoffs. The Panthers dominated the Firebirds in the first half, jumping out to a 14-0 lead, on extended drives capped by a 1-yard TD run by Groene and a 32-yard pass from Groene to Josh Jones. But the wheels fell off early in the second half when a holding penalty negated a long pass play and and a Groene interception allowed West to get back into the game. The defenses battled until late in the fourth quarter, when West scored again to tie the game at 14. Elder's last drive stalled on 4th down and 20 and overtime seemed likely, when West was slow to get their punt return team onto the field, and punter Kyle Rudolph took a quick snap for a 29 yard gain. The following play was a reverse to Nick Olthaus who went 37 yards for the game-winning score.

Elder fans remember fondly the 1988 Elder-Moeller game in which the Panthers broke the Crusaders' 70-game GCL winning streak. Game 2 saw history repeat itself when the Panthers faced Charlotte Independence in the third Ohio vs. USA Kirk Herbstreit Challenge at UC. The Patriots brought a string of 109 straight victories and 7 straight North Carolina state championships into the contest, along with a #3 USA Today national ranking. Early in the game, the Patriots struck first, but the Panthers struck back and tied the contest on a 7-yard Nick Gramke run. Independence began to pull away, scoring twice to take a 20-7 lead, missing a 2-point conversion try after the second score. Elder scored again, on a 5-yard pass from John Groene to Kyle Rudolph, but the Patriots responded again before the half, and the halftime score was 27-14. The Panther machine began to move in the second half, when Eric Linneman returned an interception 49 yards to the Patriots' 1-yard line. Nick Gramke punched in for the score, and the lead was cut to 27-21 with 6:44 left in the third period. The Panther defense again responded with a fumble recovery, and scored on a Groene-to-Rudolph 10-yard pass play, following a mammoth Groene to Rudolph 4th-down-and-20 completion to keep the drive alive. The PAT attempt was missed, and the game was tied, 27-27, with 8:42 left. The Patriots scored again, making the score 34-27, but Elder tied the game with 34 seconds left on a 1-yard Gramke run and Anthony Miliano's PAT. Independence's 48-yard field goal attempt fell short, and the game went into overtime. Elder won the toss, and successfully scored a TD on a 14-yard pass to Josh Jones followed by a Miliano extra point.The Elder defense pressured the Patriots mighty offense, and the game ended on a Keith Hamberg interception.

In Game 3, the Panthers visited the newly-renovated field at Oak Hills to face the Highlanders.The teams battled to a scoreless tie at the end of the first quarter; along the way Johnny Groene was sacked and aggravated a shoulder injury he suffered the previous week and was replaced by junior QB Joe Hetzer. The Scots finally scored first, early in the second quarter, to take a 7-0 lead. The Panthers scored shortly thereafter on a 10-yard run by Nick Gramke, and the teams went into halftime tied at 7. A newly-invigorated Panther squad returned to the field after the break, and quickly took the lead on a Hetzer-to-Nick Olthaus 8-yard pass. Oak Hills could only respond with a field goal, and Elder scored again on another Hetzer-to-Olthaus pass play, this time for 10 yards. Entering the fourth quarter with the score 21-10, the Scots scored another TD late, to make the score 21-16, but the Panthers controlled the game with a final extended drive and ran out the clock to end the game. Nick Gramke finished the game with 178 yards on 32 carries, while Hetzer passed for 131 yards.

The Panthers traveled to La Salle for Game 4, to open the league portion of their schedule. After a scoreless first quarter, the Panthers drove deep into La Salle territory but had to settle for a Tony Miliano 26-yard field goal. The tenacity of the Lancers' defense became a hallmark of the game, as the Panthers were held scoreless on numerous possessions. La Salle scored to take the lead, 7-3, and just before the end of the second quarter, the Panthers scored again on a Miliano 37-yard field goal. At the half, La Salle led, 7-6. The Lancers scored twice at the beginning of the second half and appeared to be ready to break the game open, but the Panthers didn't quit and responded with two Groene-to-Rudolph TD passes, (of 10 and 13 yards) to keep the game close at 21-19. In the fourth quarter, La Salle scored again to make the game 28-19. Groene was sacked on the Panthers' next drive and re-injured his shoulder, forcing him out of the game. Joe Hetzer took over for the final drive, which ended on an interception.

The Panthers journeyed to Cleveland for Game 5, against the Lakewood St. Edward Eagles. Elder scored in the first quarter, when Nick Gramke scored on an 8-yard run, but couldn't score again. The Eagles were held to a field goal on its first scoring drive, but scored the go-ahead TD on the second. The teams' defenses battled the rest of the way, both unable to score. Elder's last attempt to score with under a minute left ended on an interception, and the Eagles ran out the clock.

The nationally-ranked St. Xavier Bombers were the Panthers' opponents for Game 6, and the game was played in front of a sold-out crowd at St. Xavier Stadium. Both teams had chances to score early in the game, but both quarterbacks threw endzone interceptions to negate their chances. The Bombers drew first blood when the Panthers, backed up in their own territory, snapped the ball through the endzone for a safety. The Bombers scored again on an extended drive in the second quarter, and kicked a FG just before the half to take a 12-0 lead into the break. The Panthers began what looked like a successful drive at the start of the second half, but a penalty negated a long pass play, and the drive stalled. The Bombers' defense dominated the rest of the way, sacking Panther QB John Groene 5 times, and maintaining the shutout. The worn-down Panther defense allowed another score in the fourth quarter, but stopped the Bombers' last drive, and the game ended, 18-0.

The Panthers finally got the chance to play in the friendly confines of The Pit in Game 7, when they hosted the Moeller Crusaders in the 50th game between the two schools. The Panthers came out fighting, and scored on their first possession, on a 69-yard pass to Kyle Rudolph. Moeller responded six minutes later to tie the game at 7. Both teams scored again before the quarter was over (with Elder scoring on a 1-yard Nick Gramke run), and after 12 minutes the game was tied at 14-14. The Panthers pulled away in the second quarter, scoring four times while shutting out the Crusaders, aided by 3 Moeller turnovers. Gramke scored again on a 1-yard run, QB John Groene did likewise, and Josh Jones added two more scores on receptions of 31 and 16 yards. So at the break, the Panthers were dominating, 42-14. Moeller scored halfway through the third quarter to pull closer, but Elder added one more to seal the victory on Nick Gramke's third score of the game. Coach Ramsey began substituting freely in the fourth quarter, and Moeller scored twice, making the final score Elder 49, Moeller 33.

The Covington Catholic Colonels visited The Pit for Game 8, carrying a 2-4 record and hoping for an upset. It was not to be however, as the Panthers dominated the game from start to finish, posting a 35-6 victory. Dequone Wright scored two TDs, and Kyle Rudolph and Nick Gramke added one each for the offense. The defense also got into the scoring act, as Eric Linneman returned a punt 68 yards for a touchdown as time ran out in the second quarter. Anthony Miliano was 5-5 in PATs to complete the rout. The win, coupled with losses by La Salle and Glen Este, improved the Panthers chances to make the playoffs, if they can win their next two games.

Quarterback Johnny Groene put on a clinic against the Cleveland Benedictine Bengals, as he completed 11 of 15 passes for 311 yards and an Elder-record 6 touchdowns to lead the Panthers to a 49-34 victory. Kyle Rudolph caught 5 passes for 120 yards and 3 TDs, Nick Olthaus caught 3 for 124 yards and 2 TDs, and Josh Jones caught 2 for 59 yards and 1 TD. Nick Gramke picked up 160 yards on 11 carries to lead the ground game. Junior DB Zach Autenrieb scored a TD on a 38-yard interception return; Stephon Burnham and Patrick Conners also picked off Bengal passes to aid the Panthers' cause. Sophomore kicker Anthony Miliano was perfect on the night, adding 7 extra points.

The Western Hills Mustangs visited The Pit for the 79th gridiron meeting between the two schools. The Panthers needed a win to have a chance at the playoffs, and the Mustangs were not expected to provide much of a battle, since they were sporting a 1-8 record entering the contest. For once the pundits were right, as the Panthers took an early 21-0 lead in the first quarter, and coasted to a 49-0 win by the time the game was over. Nick Gramke picked up three TDs, two on short runs of 5 and 2 yards, and one on a spectacular 61-yard pass play. Josh Jones (42 yards) and Kyle Rudolph (25 yards) scored on passes from John Groene, and Dequone Wright (19 yards) and Mike Neyer (19 yards) scored on the ground. Anthony Miliano again hit 7-of-7 PATs for the second consecutive week, as the Panther offensive machine seemed to be in full tilt, hoping to get the chance at another game. The defense kept the Mustangs off the scoreboard, with interceptions by Stephon Burnam (2), Keith Hamberg, and Zac Asman leading the way.

When the Harbin points were calculated, the Panthers finished in 8th place, and were matched up in the first round of the playoffs with the nationally-ranked and 1st-in-the-state St. Xavier Bombers. The Bombers took little time in proving they were justly ranked, by clobbering the Panthers, 45-14. The Bombers scored three TDs and one field goal before halftime, to lead 24-0, until Elder scored shortly before the half ended, to make the score 24-7 at the break. The Panthers couldn't stop the Bombers defensive onslaught, as St. Xavier scored on a fumble recovery in the endzone and on an interception return in the second half. The Panthers added another score late in the game, but it was too little, too late, as their season ended painfully with a 45-14 loss.

 

HONORS
USA TODAY'S ALL-USA ALL-STAR TEAM
First Team	Kyle Rudolph
ASSOCIATED PRESS ALL-OHIO ALL STAR TEAM
Second Team	Kyle Rudolph
SWOFCA  ALL-DISTRICT ALL-STAR TEAM
First Team Offense	Kyle Rudolph (TE)
Second Team Offense	Steve Hengehold (OL)
Second Team Defense	Eric Linneman (DB)
Honorable Mention	Brett Hambrick, Nick Olthaus
La ROSA'S HIGH SCHOOL MVP OF THE YEAR
Kyle Rudolph
CINCINNATI ENQUIRER ALL-CITY ALL-STAR TEAM
First Team Offense	Kyle Rudolph, Steve Hengehold
Honorable Mention	Brett Hambrick, Eric Linneman, Nick Olthaus, John Groene, Josh Jones, Marlon Lipscomb, Ricky Otis
G.C.L. SOUTH ALL-STARS
First Team Offense	Steve Hengehold, Nick Olthaus, Kyle Rudolph
Second Team Offense	John Groene, Josh Jones
First Team Defense	Brett Hambrick, Eric Linneman
Second Team Defense	Ricky Otis, Marlon Lipscomb
Academic All-Star	Steve Hengehold
TEAM AWARDS
Most Valuable Player	Kyle Rudolph
Best Offensive Lineman	Steve Hengehold
Best Defensive Lineman	Brett Hambrick
Best Offensive Back	John Groene
Best Defensive Back	Eric Linneman
Best Linebacker	Ricky Otis
Best Receiver	Kyle Rudolph
Most Improved Player	Patrick Conners
Mr. Panther	Mike Neyer
Mr. Z. I. P.	Steve Hengehold

 

Final Regular Season Individual Leaders (10 Games)

 

Team Roster

Players' names are links to their statistics.

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