SANDUSKY, Ohio — On Friday night in Elyria, the Perkins Pirates football team will aim to accomplish a feat of historic proportions. They sit on the doorstep of a State Final Four appearance, a berth the program has only reached once in 1999.
A big reason for the opportunity is their senior quarterback Logan Lesch.
"I've been working for this since I was a little kid," Lesch said.
Steering the ship is an objective for any quarterback, one that the Pirates star doesn't take lightly. With impressive arm talent and high character at his disposal, Lesch has set a course toward success.
"You get a lot more comfortable in the pocket, taking shots," Lesch said. "It just comes with confidence playing, you get used to your guys and playing with them over and over."
Starting his varsity QB career as a sophomore, he has grown into an All-State signal caller with 2nd-team All-Ohio honors in 2022. Lesch has guided the Pirates to a perfect 12-0 record so far this season.
"We speak stuff into existence, so we expected this. Not to be cocky, but this is what we worked for," Lesch said. "All offseason, this is what we've been talking and dreaming about. We deserve this spot and have worked for it."
According to the OHSAA's unofficial state record database, he ranks 23rd all-time in career passing touchdowns (96) and 39th when it comes to passing yards (8,057) throughout Ohio.
"Obviously he has the numbers that are eye-popping," Perkins head coach Jalen Santoro said. "He's a kid who is severely underrecruited and a kid who I'm happy to say I coach."
While the stats are cool, it's the team who remains priority number one.
"It all comes down to my teammates," Lesch said. "Players, coaches, everybody included with the community. I wouldn't be here without them."
Of course, with any prolific passer, the top targets always enter the conversation.
"There's the go-to fade and post to my two outside guys, Braylon (Collier) and Weston (Sturzinger)," Lesch said of his favored receivers. "That's always a go-to, we've been working on that all summer and it's been paying off for sure."
He and the rest of his team will battle the defending state champions in Glenville on Friday in a Division IV Region 14 title game. A big stage for a great performer.
"The way he's progressed through the offense, the way he hits his checkdowns and reads is where we envisioned him to be," Santoro said. "I'm super proud of the way he's progressed through that because it's a lot of the hard work that he's put in."
Logan Lesch is WTOL 11's Athlete of the Week sponsored by Dave's Running!