2022 Indianapolis Cathedral Fighting Irish Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Indianapolis Cathedral Fighting Irish will face a daunting, two-pronged, task this season: replacing a dynamic senior class and repeating as Class 5A State Champions. But programs like Cathedral do not rebuild, they reload. The Irish have the means to be able to do that again as the pipeline of talent at this Circle City powerhouse continues to flow.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Fighting Irish will be led by returning starter [player_tooltip player_id=’109625’ first=’Danny’ last=’O’Neil’]. The junior is coming off a season that saw him complete nearly two-thirds of his pass attempts. O’Neil amassed a little under 3,000 yards through the air. His touchdown to interception ratio was staggering. He threw 33 touchdowns and only a pair of interceptions. By my math, that puts the ratio at just over 16:1. O’Neil has a good arm, and he matches that with solid mobility. O’Neil makes great decisions with the football, not forcing the ball into tight coverage. O’Neil’s talent- and now experience- will be immensely important for Cathedral this year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Cathedral backfield will be headed by Carson Johnson. Johnson has good speed and the ability to follow his blocks. Johnson surpassed 600 yards on the ground a season ago. He ran for a trio of touchdowns. The complementary back will be Hesia Smith, and he is certainly not one to overlook. Smith ran for nearly 300 yards and a touchdown a season ago.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Opposing secondaries will have to account for [player_tooltip player_id=’107080’ first=’Jaron’ last=’Tibbs’] at all times. Tibbs is the offense’s playmaker. He has the ability to take the top of the defense, but he can also be effective underneath. Regardless, Tibbs can make moves to evade defenders and make plays. Tibbs combines that playmaking ability with consistency. Last year, he caught 74 passes, totaling 1,174 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Defensively, Cathedral will have to replace an outstanding group from the Class of 2022. But, returning are a group of players who are capable of carrying on the unit’s rich tradition. Leading the way is [player_tooltip player_id=’185160’ first=’Kendrick’ last=’Gilbert’]. The senior is a game-wrecker in the trenches. He can line up either as a defensive tackle or defensive end. Either way, Gilbert gives maximum effort on each play. He routinely gets into the backfield. Gilbert also has the athleticism and instincts to get his hands on passes. In 2021, Gilbert posted 45 tackles with three-and-a-half tackles-for-loss. Add in the five sacks and half-a-dozen quarterback hurries that he had, and it becomes crystal clear why [player_tooltip player_id=’185160’ first=’Kendrick’ last=’Gilbert’] will be a problem for opposing offensive lines.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>On the back end of the defense, the Irish will rely on Kyus Gargett. Another senior, Gargett has the ability to play either cornerback or free safety, and he is a ballhawk. Gargett has outstanding ball skills, but it often comes down to positioning. He gets himself into great spots to be able to make a play on the ball. Gargett’s junior campaign was limited to only seven games. In those seven appearances, however, he displayed why he will be looked at as a leader this year. Gargett nabbed five interceptions while adding three passes defensed.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->