WJ’s Tobin writes unforgettable ending to high school career

By Doug Haidet

CUYAHOGA FALLS – Nobody will ever say Marty Tobin isn’t a great author.

With his college football destination still up in the air and a daunting postseason path in front of him, the Walsh Jesuit senior penned one of the finest final chapters of anyone in his school’s football history.

A vital piece to a Warriors’ team playing one of the toughest schedules in all of Ohio this season, Tobin’s 1,856 rushing yards in 2025 are the third-most in Walsh Jesuit’s record books.

His unforgettable curtain call came during the Division II playoffs for the No. 7-ranked Warriors (11-2) – a four-game stretch that saw Tobin rush for 785 yards and eight touchdowns on 75 carries.

That postseason odyssey helped steer Walsh Jesuit to its first Final Four since 1999. It also helped land Tobin an NCAA Division I offer to Youngstown State University.

The senior – a second-team All-Ohioan – officially signed with the Penguins last week.

“He exceeded expectations,” seventh-year Walsh head coach Nick Alexander said. “… If a play is blocked for a 4-yard or 5-yard gain, he has the ability to make it a home run by making a guy miss or running through a tackle or seeing a different hole.

“He was a ticking time bomb – at any point, he could go yard.”

Tobin nearly ran for 1,000 yards in 2024, when the Warriors were spearheaded by the first Mr. Football finalist in program history – quarterback Keller Moten.

Walsh finished last season 13-1 as a regional finalist for the third time in four years, and Tobin knew full well he would need to be a linchpin for the offense in 2025 if the Warriors were to reach those massive heights again.

He said he grew from 5-foot-9 and 165 pounds as a junior to 5-11, 190 this year. His offseason, combine-style training at Speedstrength in Chesterland also helped him cut his 40-yard dash time from 4.8 last year to a personal-best of 4.5 over the summer.

“Going into the season I just had a lot more confidence because I felt my best and was working my hardest,” Tobin said.

“I was more focused on winning a state title and focused towards our goal than college because I knew it was gonna play out after the season. I just had to stay patient.”

As part of a four-headed rushing monster in 2024 that included Moten and additional key running backs Carlos Smith and Lucas Weaver, Tobin showed flashes of his rising excellence as a junior.

He cleared the 100-yard mark in four games for the Warriors – including a 211-yard performance at Benedictine – as the offense posted the greatest rushing season in program history (4,196 yards on the ground, 5,912 yards in total offense).

It was enough of a breakout to get Tobin an offer to Division II Walsh University, and it proved to him he had next-level talent after his freshman and sophomore seasons both were cut short by a stress fracture in his lower back.

Tobin said he finally felt fully healthy at the start of his junior year. And with Moten – who he called a “freak athlete” – leading the way as an eventual co-Offensive Player of the Year in Division II, Tobin was able to set his own foundation.

“I knew what I could do, but people couldn’t really see it because of my injury,” he said. “I always had the confidence that I could play like that; I wasn’t really thinking about college yet, I was just thinking about showing people what I could do.”

Once the 2025 campaign rolled around, it was no secret Tobin would be leaned on as both a big-play and a grind-it-out threat.

His regular season kicked off with a 130-yard game in a 17-14 road win against eventual Division III state runner-up Toledo Central Catholic.

Tobin then went for 131 yards and two touchdowns in a 30-6 victory in Week 2 at Division I Springfield. The Warriors didn’t allow more than 14 points in any of their last 10 games.

Tobin also had breakouts in regular-season victories over both St. Ignatius (12 carries, 202 yards, 3 TDs) and Trotwood-Madison (18-186-2).

“By him eventually being the guy,” Alexander said, “he got to really showcase his skillset.

“You turn the tape on and you see how fast he really is, running against guys that (college recruiters) know are highly recruited. Playing that competition really helps.”

It all served as a prelude to Tobin’s playoff explosion.

After a first-round bye, the senior went for 13-262-3 in a 49-18 blowout of Nordonia. It was the third-most rushing yards for a player in a game in Walsh history and almost all of it came in the first half.

He also took a screen pass 25 yards to the end zone that night.

A week later – in a 42-21 rout of 11th-ranked Austintown-Fitch that stretched the Warriors’ home win streak to 24 games – Tobin had all of his 222 yards and three touchdowns on 15 carries before halftime.

“That Fitch game, had that been a closer game, Marty would have gone for 400, I think,” Walsh assistant head coach Drew Turner said.

“Our whole goal was just to get him downhill, get him playing confident and fast. It ended up working out pretty well.”

It was a game where he needed to play big, as junior starting quarterback David Ternosky was out with an injury. Tobin paved the way by returning the game’s opening kickoff for a touchdown.

All of that set the stage for the Warriors’ monster clash against bitter rival and No. 2-ranked Hoban – a program that had beaten Walsh for the regional title in 2021, 2023 and 2024.

This time, the Warriors built a 14-7 halftime lead, then ran away with it behind Tobin through a rainy second half for a 35-7 final.

He finished with 200 yards and a pair of scores on 22 carries, calling it the best game of his career.

“As you keep going, you see his toughness,” Alexander said. “Then you see him go for 200 against Hoban – and everybody knows their defense.”

“During that week we were just so locked in and we knew we could beat them,” added Tobin, whose squad had fallen to the Knights in Week 6, 19-14. “… We just executed so well in that game, everything was going right and it was just such great momentum for this program and our team.”

Walsh lost the next week to eventual repeat state champion Avon – considered by many to be Ohio’s best team this season, regardless of Division. Tobin ran for 101 yards in that finale and, by then, was being offered preferred walk-on status at multiple Mid-American Conference schools.

His 2,876 career rushing yards on 303 carries rank fifth in Walsh history. Tobin also led the Warriors to their fifth-most team rushing yards in a season this fall (3,152).

“It’s nice to finally see a guy earn the opportunities at the next level by having great senior film,” Alexander said. “I think too many times they go off of just what you did your junior year and they fill up (roster spots).

“Obviously, his playoff stretch earned him the right to sign a Division I scholarship. It was huge (playing late into the season) because there are less people playing, so there were more eyes on him.”

Tobin had stayed in contact with Youngstown State – a four-time FCS national champion and current member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference – and said it felt like home when he went there for a visit.

A year ago, his cousin – Villa Angela-St. Joseph tight end Brian Kortovich – signed with Penn State. Now, Tobin said he will be the first member of his immediate family to play college football.

“I want to be the hardest worker in the room,” Tobin said. “Just be very coachable and get a starting job there.”