Warren High Schooler Ties Playoff Game to Childhood Cancer Fund

University School football players will wear gold laces and decals during Friday night's playoff matchup against Howland. The visual choice marks a fundraising effort led by junior cornerback Mike Papouras to support families battling childhood cancer.

The initiative, titled 'Some Things are Bigger than Football,' partners with the CK Foundation. Papouras stated the goal is to raise money to support families currently fighting the disease. Gold serves as the official awareness color for childhood cancer, providing the theme for the game.

The concept originated in Mentor three years ago. On October 20, 2023, Mentor High Cardinals named 17-year-old Jack Sawyer honorary captain while he fought Ewing sarcoma, an aggressive bone cancer. During that game, Euclid players in yellow presented Sawyer with a shirt bearing the same slogan used in this year's fundraiser.

Papouras was 13 years old during the 2023 event. His father served as the superintendent of Euclid City Schools at the time. Papouras said he realized children face hardships far greater than his own. He stated his desire to make the experience slightly easier for those kids.

Sawyer died shortly after the 2023 game. This fall, Papouras wrote to Dawn Sawyer, Jack's mother, asking for permission to honor her son. In the letter, Papouras noted he had never met Jack but admired how the teen lifted others despite his illness. Dawn Sawyer described the gesture as amazing and expressed pride in Jack's legacy.

Dawn Sawyer is expected to join Papouras on the field for Friday's game. At the 2023 event, an announcer read a note from Sawyer promoting his motto, PACE: Positive Attitude Changes Everything. Papouras hopes the crowd will hear that motto and carry it with them.

Support extends to Jack's former school. A Mentor High football player contacted Dawn Sawyer to confirm the Cardinals will wear yellow socks in his honor during their game against Euclid on Friday. The seniors decided on the tribute to remember Sawyer. Dawn Sawyer also credited Justin Hodge, a former Mentor student now at Miami University, with helping maintain Jack's memory.