College signing: Avon's Nolan Good stayed loyal to Kent State even as his stock rose

AVON — A lot has changed since Avon quarterback Nolan Good made his oral commitment to Kent State University in May. Good led the Eagles to a 16-0 season and the first Ohio High School Athletic Association Division II football championship in school history. Along the way he won the Lorain County Golden Helmet and the FOX 8 "Friday Night Touchdown" Player of the Year awards, was named an Ohio Mr. Football finalist and earned All-Northeast Lakes District and Southwestern Conference Offensive Player of the Year honors. One thing that never changed was Good's commitment to the Golden Flashes. Good made that official Tuesday when he signed his national letter of intent to continue his athletic and academic careers at Kent State next fall. "They were the first people to believe in me," Good said. "Some people say if I would have waited I would have got more (offers) but that's not what I'm about. I'm not about waiting to see what is to come, I'm about taking advantage of what I have." After a six-month grind that culminated in Avon's 20-13 win over Cincinnati Anderson in Thursday's state final, Good was able to take a break and share the moment with his family, teammates and Eagles coach Mike Elder during a ceremony in the school's auditorium. "Nolan always wanted to get better," Elder said. "Sometimes you get great players but they're uncoachable. We were lucky our best player was both a hard worker and coachable. When you have that combination it makes it easy." Elder said he has a five-part criteria for a player to be a successful quarterback. They need to excel as leaders, have the arm talent to make the all throws necessary to win, mobility, accuracy and they need to be a good decision maker. By his senior year, Good checked all five boxes. Elder, however, saw something special in him at a much younger age. "We knew when he was in fourth, fifth and sixth grade that he was a special talent," Elder said. "He has God-given athletic ability, quickness and speed. In a group of young kids in those lower grades, Good stood out. His talent was easy to identify." Good is the second member of the this year's Eagles team to sign a Division I letter of intent, joining Jeremiah Kelly, who committed to Cincinnati last week. "Now that my high school season is over and we accomplished what we set out to do, I can't wait to get to Kent State, start flipping the switch and turning that thing around," Good said. "I believe in the coaching staff at Kent State and the guys in our recruiting class and the class above it. I'm just ready to get there and get to work." According to www.247sports.com, Good is the 20th member of Kent State's 2025 recruiting class to officially sign. Among that group are two players — offensive linemen Nate Cross and safety Tanner Mintz — from the Archbishop Hoban team that Good and the Eagles defeated in the state semifinals. Contact Todd Shapiro at (440) 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com.