BY JOHN A. DARNELL JR.
      associate editor
      D.J. Dota’s Boardman High School football team opens the season hoping to light-up Spartan Stadium’s new, $225,000 scoreboard, with 15 seniors from last year’s team,, who have been in the Spartan grid program for each of the four years Dota has served as mentor.
      Coming off a 6-5 season a year ago, the Spartans begin play at home on Aug. 22 against fellow Ohio Div. II, Region 5 foe Twinsburg Tigers with renewed attitude and a lot of experience, especially on the offensive and defensive front lines. Twinsburg had a 3-7 record in 2024. (Kickoff set at 7:00 p.m.)
      Boardman’s starting offensive line this season averages 257-lbs. a man, while the defensive front four are bigger yet, averaging about 266-lbs. a man.
      The Boardman Wing-T offense begins with senior quarterback Vince Butto, who has displayed a lot of intensity in practice as well as pre-season scrimmages. The Spartan offense features a host of running backs, with senior Ryan Smith, a 6-0, 190 lb. tailback in a leading role. Smith garnered 325 yards last season as a Spartan running back.
      There’s also Ryan Mitchell, a 6-0, 190 lb. junior at the tailback post; Vic Dimargio, 6-1, 190 lbs. at fullback, and H-backs will be a pair of seniors in Alex Battaglia, 5-10, 165-lbs. and Ray Vodhanel, at 5-10, 165 lbs.
      Starting at tight end for Boardman is junior Frank Butto, a 5-11, 185 lb. performer who by all accounts sets the pace for the attitude the Spartans’ defense brings into the season.
      All of Boardman’s offensive line enters the season with experience, with four seniors and a junior. At the center slot will be senior Dom Gagliano, 6-0, 230 lbs.; at left guard will be James Mitchell, 5-10, 230 lbs.; starting at right guard will be 6-1, 250 lb. Cam Gasner; at left tackle will be Brandson Shaw, a 6-3, 290 lb. junior; and rounding out the O-line is 6-5, 275 lb. Ryan Neifer at right tackle.
      Boardman’s defensive front will open the season with Shaw and Abdel Abuenaaj (6-0, 305 lbs.) at the tackle slots; and Mitchell and Khaled Mohammed (5-11, 240 lbs.) at defense end.
      Expected to start at outside linebacker is Zezo Hadidan, a 5-11, 170 lb. junior and Ryan Smith; and inside linebackers are DiMargio, who led the Spartans in tackles a year ago; and Frank Butto.
      At the defensive back posts are Vince Butto, Battaglia and Vodhanel.
      For the past two seasons, Dimargio has been the leading tackler, notching 147 takedowns, that included 53 solo tackles a year ago. Vince Butto has experience in the defensive backfield, getting 30 takedowns in the safety spot last season, while Ryan Smith logged 21 tackles.
      Placekicker for Boardman will be Oswaldo Salinas, who served in that position last year.
      Coach Dota said he doesn’t like to say much before the season starts, but did observe he is optimistic about the coming season.
      “I feel good where were at as a team,” Coach Dota said. Captains of this year’s edition of Boardman football are Ryan Smith, Vince Butto and James Mitchell.
      The Spartans open their schedule with six non-conference games, a slate that ends of Sept. 26 against Cardinal Mooney.
      Boardman begins All American Conference play on Oct. 3 against Warren G. Harding and plays its final three games of the regular season at home, on Oct. 10 against Howland, on Oct. 17 against Austintown Fitch (a team that returns all their starters from a season ago); and on Oct. 24 against Canfield, coached by former Spartan grid mentor D.J. Ogilvie, who enters his second season at the helm of Cardinal grid fortunes.
      Dota was named Boardman head football coach in Jan. 2022, following the decimation of Spartan football program under Seth Antran, who served only one season of Spartan head coach. After rebuilding the program, Boardman earned a Div. II playoff berth last season and finished with a 6-5 mark, but ending the year with a 37-7 loss at the hands of Hudson.