Interesting - Impact Transfers Cincinatti Taft

[kahn]

I can't speak for Taft specifically but I went to high school at one of their league rivals (Western Hills c/o 02) and the reason for the small crowd is probably what you'd see at any Cincinnati Public School.

There is very little sense of community, little parental involvement and no concept of neighborhood or regional identity.

In southern Ohio it seems every little town has their own high school, in Cincinnati, outdated systems have kids bussed out of their neighborhoods to attend schools. I was the minority in the fact that I lived close enough to walk to my school, most kids bussed from downtown.

Southern Ohio is lucky to have the community support and parental involvement it does. In Cincinnati, you see that at a lot of the private schools and some of the richer public ones but certainly not Cincinnati Public.

As for the transfers, interesting that some of these kids went from private to a public school. Guess that works both ways.

[sparky]

kids don't make these decisions about putting these teams together, parents do.

[Peake]

Washington and Stanford from Taft will be D1 football players next season. Michigan has offered Stanford, I believe Penn State has as well.

[TribeManiac10]

Washington and Stanford from Taft will be D1 football players next season. Michigan has offered Stanford, I believe Penn State has as well.

Ohio State has offered him at the wide reciever spot.

[ohbuckeye2]

Washington and Stanford from Taft will be D1 football players next season. Michigan has offered Stanford, I believe Penn State has as well.

Ohio State has offered him at the wide reciever spot.

Not next Season, they are both Juniors this year.

[yabbadabbadoo]

I think Washington was the only Senior on the team.

Maybe this has something to do with the small crowds at this years state tourney. So sad this is what high school sports is coming to.

There is rule limiting the number of players from a high school playing on an AAU team (until June). Couldn't there be a rule adopted limiting the number of AAU players playing on the same high school team.

I didn't see it but heard from a friend about STO interview with one of the Taft players and the player commenting on the coach getting them anything they needed (shoes, clothes, food, etc). Any truth to this?

Yes, I saw it. Also, Washington said later that the coach was a father figure to some and he gives them money; "Whatever we need."

WOW!!!!! "Lucy, someone is going to have some 'splainin to do."

This will just be another black eye for the OH$AA. Had to strip Africentric of there title in 06 and I can see the same thing happening here. Sounds like a documentary I just watched about the fab five.

[ohbuckeye2]

Washington is a Junior

Cincinnati Taft (24-1) is making its first state tournament appearance. The Senators are ranked No. 1 by the AP and have been a heavy favorite from day one to cut down the nets much like they were a year ago before being upset by Columbus Bishop Ready in the regional final. Taft, who has won 13-straight games, brings to Columbus a plethora of talent led by an outstanding junior class featuring 6-5 Adolphus Washington, 6-5 Dwayne Stanford, 5-7 Orlando Berry, 6-3 Jalen Lowe, and 6-0 Jamaine Freeman. Washington is arguably the most dominant player in D3, averaging 19.1 points and 15.3 rebounds a game along with being named Southwest District and Cincinnati Metro Athletic Conference Player of the Year. The “Diesel” as he is known by his friends is drawing looks from several major college football programs along with classmate Stanford. “Too Tall” Stanfard follows with 12.2 points and 9.2 boards and Berry or “Lil O” does a nice job at the point getting 13.1 points, 9.1 assists and six caroms. Lowe averages just below 10 points per outing and seniors Kadeem Palmer (8.6 ppg.) and Chris Lowe (7.5 ppg.) have been effective as well. Freeman and senior Marquez Johnson do a lot of the dirty work. Taft’s only setback was to one of Indiana’s best in Hamilton Southeastern by a single point. The Senators have won their tournament games by a whopping 38.7 points per game, which includes a four-point win over a talented Cincinnati Summit Country Day team in the regional finals. Taft is trying to become just the second CMAC school to win a state championship as Cincinnati Woodward was able to do so in 1990. Ironically, Orlando Berry’s father, Orlando Berry Sr., was on that team along with DJ Boston and Chip Jones.

[yabbadabbadoo]

I guess he is. I thought it said he had already signed to play football for OSU somewhere. He must just be a verbal commit then

[ohbuckeye2]

http://www.examiner.com/akron-high-scho ... ampionship

Fresh off an Ohio division three state championship, Cincinnati Taft high school (26-1) is dealing with the shots that often accompany being on top. Taft, who won the state championship in a landslide victory over Cleveland Central Catholic (19-9) on Saturday, is being criticized by many for circumventing traditional means of developing a state high school championship team.

According to a Cincinnati Enquirer report, Adolphus Washington (D3 player of the year), Jalean Lowe, Dwayne Stanford, Orlando Berry, and Jermaine Freeman are all teammates in the All-Ohio AAU organization and won a national championship in both 2007 and 2009. Although there is an OHSAA rule that states only two players from each school team can play on the same club team, this only applies to players who played the previous season at the same high school as his or her club teammates. Because of this, these players will not be able to play on the same AAU team this upcoming season.

Juniors Washington, Stanford, and Berry all transferred from Cincinnati Roger Bacon as sophomores last year. Freeman is a transfer from Cincinnati Aiken this year while Lowe and his brother, Chris, transferred from Cincinnati North College Hill this year.

Matt Sheets, Columbia Station's Head Boy's Basketball Coach said, "They seemed to always be a step ahead of their oppenent. It was quite a feat to watch."

The Senators coach, Mark Mitchell, smiled after the game and said, “No one thought we could do this, but we proved them wrong.”

However, many questions have arisen regarding a statement Washington made in a Sports Time Ohio interview following the game. Washington said, “Anything we need coach gets us. Money, food, you name it.”

Mitchell, who many of the players consider a father figure, is no doubt an amazing person and role model to many young men who have very little to go home to.

This is where this debate gets complicated. What is a coach’s job? To show up and teach the players basketball and let them go on their merry way? To show them how to cover a pick and roll and then say have a nice night? Obviously most people think that sounds ridiculous. A coach’s job is to not only make the players on his or her team better players, but also help their student-athletes become contributing members of society one day.

So what is Mitchell doing? Is he bending the rules or is he doing what he feels he has to do to make sure young adults, who often have no other adult male influences to look up to, get what they need to survive? The questions and answers will continue to role in as we learn more about this situation, but one thing that can not be argued is that Mark Mitchell genuinely cares about the players that he is coaching. He is giving them a positive outlet, in which they can be around a positive influence and make life long memories with their teammates.

[Peake]

Yeah I know they are both juniors. I meant they would be signing with a d1 football team next season. My bad.

Stanford has not verballed to anyone.

[smurray]

Coach gets them money, food, you name it? Good think this isn't the NCAA.

[Raiderball]

Washington is a Junior

Cincinnati Taft (24-1) is making its first state tournament appearance. The Senators are ranked No. 1 by the AP and have been a heavy favorite from day one to cut down the nets much like they were a year ago before being upset by Columbus Bishop Ready in the regional final. Taft, who has won 13-straight games, brings to Columbus a plethora of talent led by an outstanding junior class featuring 6-5 Adolphus Washington, 6-5 Dwayne Stanford, 5-7 Orlando Berry, 6-3 Jalen Lowe, and 6-0 Jamaine Freeman. Washington is arguably the most dominant player in D3, averaging 19.1 points and 15.3 rebounds a game along with being named Southwest District and Cincinnati Metro Athletic Conference Player of the Year. The “Diesel” as he is known by his friends is drawing looks from several major college football programs along with classmate Stanford. “Too Tall” Stanfard follows with 12.2 points and 9.2 boards and Berry or “Lil O” does a nice job at the point getting 13.1 points, 9.1 assists and six caroms. Lowe averages just below 10 points per outing and seniors Kadeem Palmer (8.6 ppg.) and Chris Lowe (7.5 ppg.) have been effective as well. Freeman and senior Marquez Johnson do a lot of the dirty work. Taft’s only setback was to one of Indiana’s best in Hamilton Southeastern by a single point. The Senators have won their tournament games by a whopping 38.7 points per game, which includes a four-point win over a talented Cincinnati Summit Country Day team in the regional finals. Taft is trying to become just the second CMAC school to win a state championship as Cincinnati Woodward was able to do so in 1990. Ironically, Orlando Berry’s father, Orlando Berry Sr., was on that team along with DJ Boston and Chip Jones.

I wondered if Berry could be related to the Berry that played for Woodward.

[Peake]

BTW, both Washington (#1 player in Ohio football) and Stanford said they will play college ball together. Only school to offer both (Michigan).

[TribeManiac10]

BTW, both Washington (#1 player in Ohio football) and Stanford said they will play college ball together. Only school to offer both (Michigan).

Ohio State offered both of them as well.

[trojandave]

Raiderball: Taft's Orlando Berry is the son of Orlando Berry, Sr........who started on the 1988 D1 state championship Woodward team which went 26-2 that year........other starters on that team were 6-5 D.J. Boston, 6-5 Melvin Bostic, 6-5 Katara Reliford, and 6-2 Chip Jones.......I know that Jones played at Tennessee, while Berry played at Dayton I believe.......the others had some D1 offers, but I'm not sure where they ended up.........Portsmouth won the D2 state title the same year (27-1), but I still maintain to this day that Woodward was at least 10 points better than the Trojans........Woodward beat Columbus Linden McKinley 107-70 for the title, while Portsmouth beat Linden McKinley in the regular season 88-66........after watching Woodward win the title, I was convinced that the Bulldogs were the best team in Ohio that year.......also interesting was that the D3 state champion in 1988 was Hamilton Badin with a perfect 28-0 mark.

It was originally posted on the OHSAA website state tournament preview that Woodward won the 1990 state title, but that was not correct........Toledo Scott won the D1 title in 1990.