LOVELAND MAGAZINE

News and Events from the Loveland, Ohio Area

Without fear or favor
Since 2004

Tag: tight ends coach

  • Loveland Bids Farewell To Head Football Coach Andy Cruse

    Loveland Bids Farewell To Head Football Coach Andy Cruse

    (Loveland Magazine file photo when Andy Cruse was introduced to Tiger fans at a home basketball game on February 11, 2019)

    Cruse will become Tight Ends Coach for the Miami RedHawks

    by Chris Ball

    Loveland, Ohio – This past Wednesday, Loveland leaned the bittersweet news that head football coach Andy Cruse would be departing to assume the role of tight ends coach for the Miami RedHawks in Oxford, Ohio. Cruse had been the head coach of the Tigers for five years after stints at Moeller and Turpin, which was his alma mater.

    2023 was Loveland’s best year under Cruse. They finished 5-6 and there was a lot of hope that perhaps the team could improve on that going into 2024. It was their best record since going 6-4 in 2015. Overall, Cruse was 12-37 at the helm of the Tigers’ program, which ran from 2019-2024. After quite a few struggles following winning the state title in 2013, he lead the team to two straight postseason births.

    Head Coach Andy Cruse leading the Tigers out of the “Tunnel” during a Pandemic game in August of 2020 (Loveland Magazine file photo)

    Cruse will be returning to his former college team. He was a wide receiver for the RedHawks and a co-captain in his senior year. Coach Cruse also had a good amount of NFL experience, playing for the Houston Texans and Minnesota Vikings.

    All of Loveland wishes Coach Cruse the best and that he has success at Miami. But for now it is an exciting time for Loveland football as it searches for its next head coach. At the moment, defensive coordinator AJ Williams and special teams coordinator Brian Damewood are the interim co-coaches. This writer was honored enough to play for Coach Damewood during his brief but happy career with the Tigers from 1999-2003 and so the program is in the best of hands moving forward.

    While coaching searches are never easy, the opportunity to take the reins at a solid program like Loveland will no doubt attract very qualified candidates. Loveland athletic director Jayson Bruce has a great opportunity for to secure the future of this program by making a great hire, and this city looks forward to a new chapter in Loveland football history.

    Go Tigers!

    ________________

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    Christopher Ball is a longtime Loveland resident and an attorney. He graduated from Loveland High School in 2003 and was a member of the football team before going on to become a coach’s assistant at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. He has been following and rooting for the Reds and Bengals since the early 1990s and has been through the many ups and downs that fandom has wrought over the years.

  • Former Loveland High School star Brian Wozniak hired as tight ends coach for Michigan State

    Former Loveland High School star Brian Wozniak hired as tight ends coach for Michigan State

    Loveland Magazine file photo from 2008 when Brian Wozniak played for the Loveland High School Tigers

    by David Miller

    Loveland, Ohio – According to Sports Illustrated, new Michigan State head coach Jonathan Smith has brought half his Oregon State coaching staff with him to East Lansing and former Loveland High School standout Brian Wozniak is one of them.

      • As reported by Sports Illustrated, “Wozniak started at Oregon State as a graduate assistant in 2015 and worked his way up to tight ends coach in 2018 when Smith was hired there. Growing up in Loveland, Ohio (outside of Cincinnati) Wozniak played four years at Wisconsin from 2010-13. During his time in Corvallis, Wozniak coached three future NFL tight ends with the Beavers, two of whom were drafted. In 2023, Oregon State tight end Luke Musgrave was drafted in the second round by the Green Bay Packers, eight spots ahead of former Michigan State wide receiver Jayden Reed. Wozniak has developed three-star recruits into NFL talent, and with his Ohio roots he should be able to land and develop local high school talent.”
    Brian Wozniak photo by Oregon State

    “Brian Wozniak will be a very valuable asset to the Michigan State football program due to his Midwest roots,” said his former Loveland coach Andrew Marlett. “Woz was an outstanding high school football player at Loveland High School in Cincinnati Ohio and at the University of Wisconsin. He has already proven himself to be an excellent recruiter and a developer of talent. He’s a rising star and will have a major impact on the Spartan football program.” Marlett was once Wisconsin’s head of football recruiting efforts and was a three-time all-Mid-American Conference pick as a defensive lineman, a high school coach in Ohio for more than two decades, and has coached at the college level.

    At Oregon State, Wozniak was the Tight Ends Coach and Recruiting Coordinator.

    Brian was a four-year letterman tight end at Wisconsin and was the Offensive Captain his Senior Year. He went to 5 bowl games as a player, 3 times to the Rose Bowl. As a player, he was part of 3 Big Ten Championship teams. As a coach and player, he has gone to a total of 7 national bowl games.

    Brian was a member of three Big Ten Champion Badger teams.

    Wozniak was a Loveland High School graduate and was ranked among the top 40 tight ends in the country. He signed an undrafted free agent contract with the Atlanta Falcons prior to the 2014 season.

    The Wozniak Loveland Tiger File

    Woz's
    Loveland Magazine File Photo

    Brian Wozniak was a three-time varsity letter winner and starter in football, and a four-time varsity letter winner and starter in basketball. He graduated in 2009. At his college signing ceremony when asked by Loveland Magazine what he will miss most about Loveland football he said, “I will miss all the players on my team. We had great camaraderie.” He said he will also miss Head Coach Andrew Marlatt “and the entire coaching staff.”

    Wozniak is a member of the Loveland High School Athletic Hall of Fame.

    In basketball, Wozniak was a three-time 1st Team Fort Ancient Valley Conference selection, two-time Loveland Co-Most Valuable Player, and three-time Team Captain. Wozniak ended his basketball career as Loveland’s 6th all-time leading scorer.

    Loveland Magazine file photo

    In football, Wozniak was a two-time 1st Team Fort Ancient Valley Conference selection. As a Senior, he was a Team Captain and earned 2nd Team All-Ohio. Wozniak was Loveland’s Co-Most Valuable Player as a Junior and he won Loveland’s Stan McCoy Award for his leadership and commitment as a Senior. Wozniak also earned All-Conference Academic Awards in football and basketball his Senior year.

    Wozniak was recruited by Ohio State, Purdue, Kentucky, Michigan State, Iowa, Duke, and Colorado, and of course Wisconsin.

    Brian went from one football offer at Miami University to fourteen. Wisconsin, Louisville, U.C., Connecticut, Maryland, Akron, Marshall, Ohio U., Toledo, Eastern Michigan, Kent State, Bowling Green, and the Air Force all made offers.

    Brian is married to Samantha and has 3 sons; Sons, Bronson, Conrad, and Wyatt. Brian’s mother and father, Patty and John live in Loveland, Ohio.

  • LHS alum, Brian Wozniak elevated to tight ends coach at Oregon State

    LHS alum, Brian Wozniak elevated to tight ends coach at Oregon State

    File photo of Brian Wozniak playing Loveland Tiger football in 2008

    Wozniak spent the 2015-17 seasons at OSU as an offensive graduate tight ends coach before transitioning to offensive quality control analyst earlier this year


    Corvallis, Ore. –     Brian Wozniak, who has been a part of the Oregon State football staff the last four years, has been elevated to tight ends coach, Beaver head coach Jonathan Smith announced.

    The appointment is contingent on the completion of all university hiring processes.

    NOTABLES:
    3- Rose Bowl games as a player
    4- January 1st Bowl games as a player
    3- Big Ten Champions as a player
    Offensive Captain Senior Year (Wisconsin)
    Wisconsin Wayne Sousa Coaches Appreciation Award (Offense)

    “Coach Wozniak is highly respected by our team and his experience at both playing tight end and coaching the position is a tremendous asset,” Smith said. “I’m also excited about what he brings to the program from a recruiting perspective with his enthusiasm and his ability to connect with coaches and athletes.”

    Wozniak spent the 2015-17 seasons at OSU as an offensive graduate tight ends coach before transitioning to offensive quality control analyst earlier this year.



    The 27-year-old was a four-year letterman tight end at Wisconsin, finishing his eligibility following the 2013 season. He played in 47 career games, starting two seasons. In addition, he played in three Rose Bowl games and was a member of three Big Ten Champion Badger teams. He signed an undrafted free agent contract with the Atlanta Falcons prior to the 2014 season.

    The Wozniak Loveland Tiger File

    Woz's
    Loveland Magazine File Photo

    Brian Wozniak was a three time varsity letter winner and starter in football, and a four time varsity letter winner and starter in basketball. He graduated in 2009. At his college signing ceremony when asked by Loveland what he will  miss most about Loveland football he said, “I will miss all the players on my team. We had great camaraderie.” He said he will also miss Head Coach Andrew Marlatt “and the entire coaching staff.”

    In basketball, Wozniak was a three-time 1st Team Fort Ancient Valley Conference selection, two-time Loveland Co-Most Valuable Player, and three-time Team Captain. Wozniak ended his basketball career as Loveland’s 6th all-time leading scorer.

    In football, Wozniak was a two-time 1st Team Fort Ancient Valley Conference selection. As a Senior, he was a Team Captain and earned 2nd Team All-Ohio. Wozniak was Loveland’s Co-Most Valuable Player as a Junior and he won Loveland’s Stan McCoy Award for his leadership and commitment as a Senior. Wozniak also earned All-Conference Academic Awards in football and basketball his Senior year.

    Wozniak was recruited by Ohio State, Purdue, Kentucky, Michigan State, Iowa, Duke, and Colorado, and of course Wisconsin.

     

    Jarvis Global is an investment advisory firm in Symmes Township, Ohio which offers private portfolio management and retirement services to high net worth individuals.