Cincy Enquirer
8/18
Thursday, August 18, 2005 <!-- ARTICLE HEADLINE --> Called up to the bigs
Now Div. I, Withrow gets shot to prove it's among area's best
By Carey Hoffman
Enquirer contributor
<!-- ARTICLE SIDEBAR --><!--ARTICLE BODY TEXT--> Withrow coach Doc Gamble's view of this year's team, in light of last year's 10-0 regular season and first-ever playoff appearance, best could be termed unexpected.
He labels the 2005 Tigers his first true varsity team. As it enters the third year of Gamble's tenure, the Withrow program has passed a new milestone of maturity.
"The last two years we've played with ninth- through 12th-graders," Gamble said. "This year, we'll play varsity football with juniors and seniors. Freshmen will play freshman ball and sophomores will play JV. It would take a pretty special guy to change that."
Gamble has the numbers to back up his theory.
The Tigers will take to the field with 24 seniors and 42 juniors. The past two teams have had 13 and 14 seniors.
With about 150 players overall, they have numbers that will allow them to compete with the biggest programs in the area.
That's a good thing, because they'll have to do just that. Withrow moved up from Division II to Division I in the yearly enrollment reclassifications put together by the Ohio High School Athletic Association.
This season's program is a far different one from the one inherited by Gamble three years ago.
Withrow will play in the season-opening Skyline Chili Crosstown Showdown, which never before has featured a Cincinnati Public Schools squad. (Western Hills also will play this year). Withrow's opponent will be area powerhouse Moeller.
"We're just going to line up and play football," Gamble said of the matchup. "Our schedule was done before we ever found out (about the reclassification), so our margin for error will be very small. But we're happy and excited about having an opportunity to play against Moeller in that kind of setting."
Three years ago, it would have been difficult to imagine a Withrow-Moeller matchup.
But there's no doubt that Withrow now has a lot of talent. Two seniors already have made NCAA Division I college commitments: defensive end Kallen Wade to Notre Dame and defensive back Brandon Miller to the University of Cincinnati. Another defensive back, Robert Williams, has a list of nine Division I schools he plans to visit.
Linebacker Shawn Redd (5-11, 210 pounds), whom Gamble calls his best player, is a little undersized but probably is at least a Mid-American Conference-level recruit. Three or four other seniors also are hearing from colleges.
The Tigers' talent pool is deep enough that some consider Withrow to be a southwestern Ohio version of Cleveland Glenville, a public school program that has become a leader in producing college prospects from of a student body drawn from an urban area.
"There's been some talk about our being the Glenville of Cincinnati," Gamble said. "But our school is also different in that we had an 'Excellent' rating (academically) from the state last year."
Withrow's academic programs have been narrowed to an international program and a university program.
"College coaches tell us as long as this school is in place, they'll be back," said Gamble. "They're comfortable that they don't have to worry about what is going to happen with our kids."
In Gamble's first season, he heard from fewer than 10 college coaches inquiring about his players. This past May, he had 55 college coaches in the building visiting, including Jim Tressel of Ohio State, Charlie Weis of Notre Dame and Ron Zook of Florida.
The program also has captured the attention of Withrow's students. This is the first year Gamble didn't think it was necessary to walk the halls and try to drum up interest in playing football.
The Tigers have numbers, experience and talent. They've reached the next level in one sense, and now they'll find out what that means competitively.
"What excites me the most is that we're finally a solid football program," Gamble said. "You have to work your way up to be a member of our football team."
