AHS linebacker Lacey chooses Ashland University for next stop

By Doug Haidet

ASHLAND – He probably never really had the time to think about all the ways it made perfect sense.

Gunner Lacey was too busy setting the Ashland High School record for tackles and becoming the first defensive player in team history to be named a first-team All-Ohioan twice. So the right moment for deep deliberation likely never arose.

But last Thursday, on his official visit to Ashland University, it seemed like fate had finally arrived. Over time, becoming an Eagle simply became inevitable.

With his parents, Kevin and Bridgit Lacey, alongside him during a meeting with AU head coach Doug Geiser, the star linebacker committed to join the Eagles.

After totaling 416 career tackles and playing a leading role in two of the most successful seasons in 119 years of Arrow football, he landed in the place his football compass always seemed to point toward.

Lacey will make it official on National Signing Day on Feb. 4.

“There’s a big legacy for me to go there,” the 5-11, 200-pound Lacey said. “Growing up, I was always at the AU games, with both my parents being AU alums. … It’s just something I grew up around.

“I think deep down, they all knew my future would end up with me being an Eagle.”

There’s no question the signs all pointed toward Jack Miller Stadium.

His parents both went to Ashland University in the 1990s, with his dad also playing for the Eagles.

But his ties to the program go deeper than that.

Lacey’s head coach at AHS, Scott Valentine, was an Eagle in the 1980s and his defensive coordinator, Ryan Stackhouse, played there in the 2000s.

His second-cousin, Kyler Lacy, landed with the program in the 2010s. And even now, the defensive teammate with whom he terrorized opponents the most as an Arrow – former AHS standout Tyler Sauder – also just went through his first season at AU.

Lacey had an additional offer from Division II Saginaw Valley State University. He had gone on Division I visits to Mid-American Conference programs including Miami, Buffalo, Ohio and Central Michigan.

In the end, though, the right fit was always right down the road.

“I knew the campus already, so I didn’t even have to go on the tour (during last week’s visit). I could probably give the tours to everyone,” Lacey said with a laugh.

“He’s a great football player and I know (the coaching staff) is excited to have him,” Sauder said.

Sauder has seen enough through the years to know his former AHS teammate has the skills to be an impact performer with the Eagles.

The two were the defensive linchpins on the Arrows’ 12-1, Ohio Cardinal Conference-winning team in 2024, when they both were All-Ohioans.

Combined, Lacey and Sauder collected more than 730 tackles during their Ashland High School careers.

“It’s awesome to have him come and to be able to go and compete with him for the next four or five years,” Sauder said. “I’ve been harping on him since basically they offered him his junior year, ‘When you comin’? When you comin’?’

“It’s a great program, and being this close to home, we get to see day-in and day-out how great their facilities are, the coaches, players and teams they’ve had.”

The coaches at Ashland University didn’t need a magnifying glass to see Lacey’s impact on the field. He was the top tackler for the Arrows in three different seasons and even collected 65 tackles (fifth on the team) as a freshman – making him a rare four-year starter in the program.

Lacey’s 140 tackles (29 for loss, 9 sacks) as a junior were a big reason he was one of the Cleveland Plain Dealer’s linebackers to watch in 2025.

By the end of his senior season, the Arrow defense had allowed its fewest points per game in a decade (15.8) behind Lacey’s leadership. Ashland’s starting unit did not allow a single point in the second half of a game until Week 10.

He finished his year with 99 tackles despite sitting out the bulk of the Arrows’ second halves due to their many blowout wins.

In Division II, Lacey was the Northwest District co-Defensive Player of the Year.

“It was a pretty incredible career,” Stackhouse said. “The dude was an animal for three straight years and some as a freshman.

“You see some kids who are just trying to figure stuff out as a freshman – you can tell they’re good, but they’re still trying to figure it out. Then with guys like Gunner, you can tell they think they’re gonna win every battle.”

Lacey said it was huge that he was given opportunities as a freshman by then-defensive coordinator Cayleb Cox. His big focus at that time was simply stacking up reps in summer workouts and making a noticeable impact during scrimmages.

By Week 2 that freshman season, he was starting, and he ended up second on the team in tackles for loss (18).

“I couldn’t be more blessed,” Lacey said. “I wouldn’t be where I am without the coaches and teammates I had going through it all.”

He said he saw his biggest jump in performance from his sophomore to his junior season, and Stackhouse said the development never stopped.

Lacey’s instincts and physicality continued to grow; he had the muscle to take on the biggest fullbacks on the opposing sideline and the speed to run down receivers for tackles on jet sweeps.

“He was changing the outcome of the game by the way he played,” Stackhouse said.

The Arrows won their last 15 home games with Lacey on the roster, making the playoffs all four of his seasons as well. He’ll graduate with nine varsity letters (four in both football and track, one in basketball).

At Ashland University, Lacey will link up with Geiser and legendary defensive coordinator Tim Rose, who annually has the Eagles among the best Division II defenses in the nation.

In 2025, AU finished third in the country in total defense. The Eagles have led their Great Midwest Athletic Conference in sacks in each of the last three seasons and have won at least nine games in each of the last four – the first such streak in program history.

Lacey said it would have been difficult for him to go to a place that didn’t have a dominant defense as part of its identity.

“It’s an honor to be able to play on a defense like that,” he said. “… The past four years, it’s been some of the most successful in AU history and you can tell with Coach Geiser it’s only positives.

“They were the first to offer me my junior season and from there on, they just kept showing me respect, kept in touch, kept talking with me. That’s really important to me. ... They recruited me because they liked me as a player and as a person.”

The Eagles have won or shared the G-MAC title in three of their five seasons since joining the league. They have won playoff games in back-to-back years for the first time ever.

Lacey hopes he’s part of the next wave of landmark moments for the program.

“He wants to learn football, he wants to be around football,” Stackhouse said. “He wants to work and get better, and that’s a perfect place for him to be.”