McDonald’s Run Through Avon Record Books Results in March to West Point

Ross McDonald etched his name all over the record books while a member of the Avon High School football team and is now moving on to write an even more important chapter in his life.

 On national signing day McDonald made a commitment to West Point and will play football for the Army Black Knights next season.

 After a stellar career as a Falcon, McDonald is more than ready to move on according to Avon football coach Brett Quinion.

“Ross looks forward to the challenge that West Point is and is more than ready to meet it,” Quinion said. “To me, West Point is the epitome of what America stands for and it is the home of the best of the best.  As for football it is a perfect fit for Ross.  He is both versed and experienced in the mid-line and veer option attack that they run.  I am sure that Army football looks forward to finding their best fit for Ross's talents.”

 The talents Quinion speaks of were what made McDonald an All-State selection the last two seasons and gave him most of the program’s rushing records, including most rushing attempts, most yards and most touchdowns.

 McDonald set the single game record of 275 yards in a game against Canton this year and he tied Mike D'Onofrio's single-game record of five rushing touchdowns in a game.

He owns the single-season rushing record total of 1,974 yards in his junior year, the same season he set the single-season touchdown record of 35.

McDonald was a big reason the Falcons went 18-3 over the last two seasons as he added to his gaudy career stats and finished with 4,243 rushing yards and 71 touchdowns.

At 6-3, 210 pounds, McDonald has shown he is a versatile runner, playing a downhill style and also being able to pick up the tough yards between the tackles.

“Ross is a quiet young man and talks with his shoulder pads,” Quinion said. “He has played fullback in a mid-line and veer option game which will help him at West Point as that is what they run.  He will likely end up as a fullback in college.”

With strong legs and a terrific stiff arm, McDonald has shown a knack for keeping tacklers at a distance and very rarely lets one defender bring him down.  

“He reminds me a lot of Jared Hassin the Army fullback now who is 6-3, 235 and has the ability to run like a halfback,” Quinion said. “The sky is the limit for Ross. He is very bright and diligent in his scheme study.  I look for him to really enjoy the total experience at West Point.”

While confident MacDonald will do well at Army, Quinion is also excited to watch and see what he can do.

 “As fans it will fun to follow Ross' career.  For me it has been my favorite football team since 1969 - 1970 when I watched Lynn Moore run the ball there,” Quinion said. “The Black Knights are fortunate to have Ross in their fold and the Academy has gained a great young man. “It will be a great honor to have an Avon graduate gracing Blaik Field and Michie Stadium.”

While many college programs make signing day seem like a national holiday, Army keeps things closer to the vest. Due to the U.S. Military Academy appointment process, names of recruited cadet-athletes are not available until they arrive for Reception Day (R-Day) this summer and the Academy did not release its football recruiting classes names.

“It’s probably not quite as dramatic as it is some places because we’re on signatories to the National Letter, but an awful lot of guys have that date as ‘zero hour,’” Army head coach Rich Ellerson said.  “They’re going to sign something, even if it’s just a certificate from us stating that they’re going to attend West Point and we’re glad to have them; but we can’t release that. But because the rest of the college football world is centering around that date, our guys do as well. Most of those decisions have been made well ahead of time, but there’s still a sense of ceremony, still a sense of celebration at that moment.”
   
Army was scheduled to begin spring practice on Feb. 16 with the spring game tentatively slated for March 9.

The Black Knights are scheduled to open their 2011 campaign Sept. 3 when they visit Northern Illinois in DeKalb, Ill.

Army is coming off a 7-6 season that was capped with a 16-14 victory over SMU in the Armed Forces Bowl on Jan. 30.