Springfield Win Tonight Would Bring Much More Than a Title

Expect a Focused Springfield Team Tonight; Win Would Bring Much More Than a Title 

By Deon Cash 

 The Springfield Wildcats seemed to be a team of destiny last year during the OHSAA Football seaaon. 

They had a Mr. Football candidate at quarterback,  to go with a variety of elite defenders on defense. Top that off with a second to none coaching staff and you had a on the rise organization to prepare to take on one of the elite programs in OHSAA storied football history, which has been dominated by the northern portion of the state in recent years.  

Springfield would battle St Edward in the D-1 Title game last year, but a slow first half would put them in a early hole. While the Cats would have their  opportunities, it just was not to be despite a valiant effort by Star QB Tae'Sean Smoot and the troops. In watching the game, you could see that Springfield was a little bit in awe of the moment and needed a little time to settle into the atmosphere within the game. 

Coach Douglas spoke on this moment. 

"Last year I think the lights got a little too bright for some of our players early in the game. We had never been at the State Championship game before, and in the 1st half it seemed as if we were still trying to find our rhythm, which cost us. In the 2nd half we played much better but it was too late and we left some plays on the field. You can'tdo that in a Championship game."

Watch the Full Interview here: 

St. Ed would hoist the trophy, sending a wave of dissapointment to the Cats locker room. The good part: Springfield realizing that they were literally a few plays or a quarter away from being a champion.

Now fast forward to this season. 

With a plethora of guys who were back (Anthony Brown, Jaivian Norman to name a couple) who were key factors last year along with a couple of rising young talent (Aaron Scott J r, Bryce Washington, the offensive line) and a couple of key transfers (Schondelmyer, Owens), the Cats are right back in the same position they were in last year - which is  playing for a championship against St Edward this weekend back to back years.

 However this game coach and the team have taken a slightly different approach, and it shows the mentality that has been taken all season.

Coach Douglass is all about "finishing it", and this is right summarization of how dominant his team has been over the last half decade.

In the last S.E.Live show, Douglass states exactly that. (LINK BELOW): 

But, in order to be the best, you know the saying. 

And that wont be a easy task, considering they are playing the reigning D-1 champs, who: (1) are playing close to home (2) have a huge fanbase (3) have a powerful offensive line and a(4) dynamic quarterback and (5) defense shut down Moeller to 0 points for an entire game. 

The only team these two teams played is Moeller, but u got the sense Springfield could have won by 2 touchdowns. 

You can bet that this Springfield team, who went down a day earlier, won't have the bright lights vibe that they did last year. Coach Douglass would know better than anyone if his boys weren't locked in from the beginning. 

Will the Cats finish it? 

 Dont bet against this team.

If they do, they will not only bring their first ever title to "The Field" but also bring the big some respect in Southwest Ohio and the Dayton area which hasn't had a D-1 champ for a long stretch since the Trotwood and Wayne days nearly a half decade ago.

 It also would give some validity to the fact that these Wildcats have had some elite players who should legitimately been considered for Mr Football, including Tae'Sean Smoot and a few kids on the team today such as Anthony Brown, Bryce Schondelmyer and Jaivian Norman. 

Check out the All-Access pass at the OHSAA STATE CHAMPIONSHIP @SELive365 

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Shaker Heights Ladies Improve to 2-2 After Blowout Win

 The Shaker Heights Lady Raiders had a roller coaster of a first week.

 They won their first game of the season in convincing fashion (51-34 vs Broadview Heights), then lost a close one on the road to an elite team (Strongsville 59-51) to go to 1-1. 

They would take another loss to a Top 25 team in the Cleveland (Hathaway Brown 72-53) area before entering the second week. 

So sitting at 1-2 after week one made the first home game a "Win At All Cost" vibe.

And the Lady Raiders did not dissapoint, as they ran over Maple Heights 59-9 to start out in the conference at 1-0 and send a clear message to the entire league.  

The Lady Raiders are ready for war this season. 

New head coach Carlton Conwell and his staff have changed the energy of the team in this early season.  Conwell, a Shaker alum, has taken this task extremely seriously, and vows to have this Lady Raiders program in the mix for the forseeable future.  

"We will definitely take this win and continue to work on getting better each and every day. Its all about the team developing and doing it the Shaker way. Go Raiders."  Conwell stated after the game.

Rising star junior G Kamryn Ruffin led the Lady Raiders and has been the catalyst of the team so far. 

Shaker will face a tough Garfield Heights team during the weekend and then host Eastlake North on Monday night.

Ohio State, Bama Legends Dee Miller and Trey DePriest Join Show Tonight (Wildcat Way Series); Coach Dellapina Speaks

 Miller, DePriest To Appear on S.E.Live365 Wildcat Way Series Tonight 

Dee Miller and Trey Depriest, two Springfield legends who starred at Ohio State and Alabama, will be on set of S.E.Live365 today for the Wildcat Way TV Series at O'Conners Irish Pub tonight. 

S.E.Live 365 airs on Fox Dayton on Saturday mornings (9:30 am) right before the Big Noon kickoff featuring Reggie Bush, Matt Leinhart and Brady Quinn, the Ohio football legend. 

Miller, who was a Star WR for Springfield, then the Buckeyes, had a great career at OSU, then played in the NFL for the Green Bay Packers after being drafted in the 6th round of the 1998 NFL Draft. 

Miller came in with the heralded group that included Orlando Pace, the OSU and NFL Hall of Famer. Miller now works with Farm Insurance in Columbus after he put down the football. 

Depriest, who was the OHSAA Defensive Player of the Year for Springfield in his time, decided on Alabama, where he would win a championship and have a very good career for the Crimson Tide. DePriest would get picked up after his college career by Baltimore for a stint with the Ravens. 

The show will start taping tonight at 6:15 at O'Conners Irish Pub on Limestone Street in Springfield. 

"We hope to have a electric atmosphere for Miller and DePriest and the Wildcat team tonight."

 Deon Cash, CEO of S.E.Live365 stated. "We appreciate MCD Media with the partnership. With the weather being good, should be a great vibe and an amazing show tonight."

To watch the previous show, click here: 

 Show with Former Springfield Star Darius Harper and Legend Karlos Marshall

Follow S.E.Live365 (@SELive365) on all platforms for more information or go to www.SELive365.com for the latest updates.

Darius Harper To Join Wildcat Way Series; MCD Media To Co-Host Playoff Series

 PRO FOOTBALL PLAYER COMES BACK TO TALK ON SELIVE365 WITH MCD MEDIA 

Darius Harper, one of the best lineman to suit up in a Springfield football uniform, will be coming on the set of SELive365 Springfield to talk with us during Week 1 of the OHSAA playoffs.

MCD Media CEO Madison Dennis will co-host the show as well. 

Harper was a offensive and defensive lineman for one of the talented Wildcats team that has been a staple at the top tier polls for the last 7 or 8 years under the Douglass regime.  

He has taken his talents to the professional level, and will talk about that tomorrow on the show.

Springfield will host a 1st round game this Friday in the OHSAA Playoffs. Coach Douglass,  who has been a co-host for the season, will sit in and talk as well for the "Wildcat Way" series that airs on Fox Dayton on Saturday mornings (9:30).

Dayton Mayor Jeffrey J Mims: "I Had A Great Time" At Wakeup Wellness Show; Jasmine Brown To Be Featured In Next Show

 The Mayor Of Dayton, Jeffrey J Mims, came on set of the new and upcoming web /TV series The Wellness Wakeup Show recently. 

 CLICK BELOW TO WATCH MAYOR ON WELLNESS WAKEUP SERIES 📺📺

Check out Mayor Mims on Wellness Wakeup Series

Its safe to say the Mayor was very pleased with the event, and absolutely loved the food as well.

Shondale D, the host and Creator of The Wellness Wakeup Show, invited Mims and he decided to come on as a special guest in the 1-hour TV style show. 

Mims would talk about key issues in Dayton along with other national topics, all while telling his intriguing life story. 

In the final segment of the show, he would be served by the Chef of The Week, who was none other than XO Chef Daryl, who is an elite chef to say the least.

One of the funniest moments is when The Mayor tasted XO Chef Daryl's Gumbo Tacos, which was magnificent in a brand new dish prepared strictly for the Mayor, the audience, and the cast. 

If you don't believe us, just ask the Mayor himself, as he verified how great the meal was. Check out this classic video of the Mayor's response to the food (Via TheWellnessLady7) on TikTok. 

Next week will be the third showing of The Wellness Wakeup, and Chef Jasmine Brown will be the featured guest. 

The show will air on October 26th on the S.E. Live365 Network, then air later on Dayton Television (Repeat). 

Heeere's Jerry! Easter II Does Work at USA Trials Alongside Boozer Twins; Debuts in LeBron James New Movie

Heeere's Jerry! 

Easter II Dominates at USA Trials Alongside Boozer Twins; Readies for Movie Debut in LeBron James Film 

By Deon Cash 

Jerry Easter II, on set with Star Actor Wood Harris in LeBron James upcoming Movie 

 Easter Does Work at USA Trials with Boozer Twins; Garners Role Acting in LeBron James New Movie in 2023

 Jerry Easter II, one of the top players in the sophomore class, will be headed to Colorado Springs to play for Team USA and to a movie screen near you as he readies for the hoop season.

Easter was invited to the USA Tryouts with his class for the chance to represent his country as one the very best youth players in the world. And make no mistakes, he put on a show all weekend with the Boozer twins.

Easter, who was recently ranked as low as 27th by ESPN rankings (which nobody understands), will now have the chance to play with the Boozer twins, the guys he took out in their only AAU loss in the last 2 years. Yeah, the sons of NBA Legend Carlos Boozer. 

Photo Courtesy of: BallisLife

While Easter has had to grind to get to this position, he is thankful for the opportunity and best believe he will be ready to go once the tryout begins. It seems as if Easter has gotten stronger, quicker and his bounce and intelligence on the court is rapidly improving. 

At a private workout in Columbus recently, we got a chance to see Easter play as Jerry Watson, Coach Quincy Simpson, and some other notable people were in the gym. 

While he was cruising early, once he hit the switch, there really was no stopping him, which it has been like since the 8th grade.

When watching him, you can see the next Penny Hardaway, mixed with a little bit of a Jimmy Jackson. And it isn't that were blinded by his dopeness, because over 30 D-1 colleges have either offered, or are planning to offer, including Ohio State, UCLA, Cincinnati, Memphis (Coached by Penny Hardaway), Syracuse, and others. 

Now Easter will get to play with the best in his class, in what will be an interesting dynamic for the sophomore sensation.

 He's been fighting to show he's the best, destroying players in the class.  Now he will get to lead the troops. 

While he still has defencies in his game, it's hard to not see the NBA potential with Easter. 

A kid who can see the floor better than most guards, yet will dunk on you from the PG spot, and can take you on the block and punish you with his physicality and post game. His build is more of the Jimmy Jackson mold than Penny Hardaway, which makes him imposing on the court. He has a real work ethic, and boxes in his spare time to stay in shape and to get stronger.  

Oh yeah, and he gets straight A's in school. Don't forget about that. Straight A's. 

He also will be in the next big basketball movie featuring the LeBron James story, which will be out next year for everyone to see. And his dad will make his acting debut as well. 

And don't forget that Mrs Trena Easter (his mom)  played for the Michigan Wolverines, so the game is all in his bloodlines. 

"I'm excited to see how I did in the movie. To play in Lebron James' movie? I'm honored." Easter said after a workout in Columbus.

Some reports have said Easter is in a few different scenes, which Easter is thrilled about. Easter will be playing with Oak Hill Academy in the movie, so remember that part. 

James shot a major portion of the movie in the Akron area, but it is not determined if he shot the entire film in Ohio. 

Regardless, expect to see Easter helping to bring the USA a gold medal alongside Boozer and the rest of the talented 2025 class, then take his talents back to school to lead Emmanuel Christian to a possible OHSAA state berth this season.

And also expect Easter to be ranked in the top 10 in his class after this weekend, no matter how inaccurate the ESPN HS rankings say. 

 He is that guy. 

Ask anybody who has watched him play against elite ballers. 

Look for Heeere's Jerry, a new Web / TV Series featuring Easter and his amazing story to get to this point, along with the day to day grind of being a elite baller in Ohio during this season.

Follow 

@JerryEaster

@JerryEasterII

@SELive365  

On the Journey! 

Despite Slight, Knox Stays Focused On His Next Opportunity; Did Fever Drop the Ball? How WNBA Should Respond

Despite Slight, Knox Stays Focused On His Next Opportunity; How Did Fever Drop the Ball? What Should WNBA Do? 

 By Deon Cash

Carlos Knox, one of the greatest hoopers in Indiana's storied basketball history, was offered the job of a lifetime.

 Knox was offered a chance to be a head coach in the WNBA, one of the biggest and best professional leagues in the world. 

While the circumstances wasn't ideal, Knox would get the opportunity to coach the Indiana Fever last season. He would become the "Interim Coach" of the Fever, taking over midseason. Marianne Stanley, the previous coach, decided to quit 7 games into the season, giving Knox the opportunity to be a Head Coach at the top level on the girls side. 

While the team has talent, this was a young core with former Ohio State star Kelsey Mitchell leading the team. They had drafted 7 rookies and kept 5 by the end of training camp. 

During last season, there were times the Fever were actually playing 3 or 4 rookies on the court, at the same time. Against the likes of Seattle, Vegas and Phoenix. Every single game. 

And while it felt a little "Fab 5 Ish" with the rookies, the results were the opposite, as the WNBA has some serious ballers on every team, considering there are only 12 teams in the league. Why are there only 12 teams? Thats a topic for another day. 

While the team was competitive in the first 25 games of Knox tenure, the organization continued to make roster moves that hurt the overall competitiveness of the team. They released the 2 tallest players on the team, as it was apparent that the Fever would have a size disadvantage each and every game. In a league loaded with elite ballers, the Fever went with rookies Queen Egbo, Nalyssa Smith, and Emily Engstler in the paint to push their new "youth movement" Lin Dunn, GM of the Fever said. 

The team would go on a long losing streak, as they played on a brutal west coast swing for the last 3 weeks of the season. By the 20-game mark it was evident that they were the worst team in basketball. 

So when the season was over, the Fever had secured the worst record in the league but had watched some of the young players get significant time. They even seen a few of their young stars play up to WNBA elite levels consistently for stretches of the season. 

However, when the season was over, Knox would get the axe, and there is still no coach for the Fever yet.

While they obviously had their eye on someone, it has been over a month and still no coach. Lin has posted a couple of social media pressers pleading for patience and excitement from the tough Fever fan base for the next coach. 

Hard to get excited when you got rid of your best coaching prospect and one of the up and comers in the coaching game and can't get anybody you actually targeted. 

While Knox had his share of ups and downs as a head coach, he literally only had 3 months to make an impact.  And anyone that knows Knox, knows he can do a variety of things, but a few things stand out:

(1) His ability to get you to listen to the gameplan and task at hand.

(2) His ability to work and get you to the next level. 

(3) He knows X's and O's and how to put key players in positions to make plays.

If you remember, Knox was a coach and trainer for Tamika Catchings, one of the greatest players in WNBA history. Knox was one of the major influencers on the only WNBA title that Indiana grabbed. He has a great repoire with a lot of the players, and still works out the likes of Skylar Diggins Smith, along with others in the WNBA and beyond. 

So, while Lin Dunn and the organization gets credit for that title, thank Knox and his tireless work ethic to help develop those players to get them to an elite level. 

Over the last decade, there has been no worse organization in sports. Read that again in case you didn't fully grasp that.

 So Knox was added back into the fold, as the organization realized what they have let go. They snatched Knox up from Cincinnati, where he was an assistant coach for the Lady Bearcats. 

While some will say Knox didn't do much but let them play a fast pace and wasn't animated on the sideline, the rebuttal for that is simple. They were the smallest, youngest, most inexperienced team in the league. By far. 

They couldn't play a slow, half-court style of game, without having a consistent post player to bring buckets, so there weren't many options. And as far as yelling and grandstanding, for what? These are pro athletes. 

             Picture Before Knox Was Head Coach

Knox absolutely deserved another season, without the meddling and patrolling of the front office who feels like they'd rather make silly commercials and do NBA2k style transactions rather than admit their faults, which were evident for a large portion of the last decade, last season, and now, offseason.

 Here's a fast fact:

One thing the NBA and other elite leagues do is protect their assets and investments, whether it's a building, a rising player, a coach, or an employee. Will the WNBA let Knox, who is a proven winner and has had a good record wherever he has been as a coach, be treated like some scrub? When in all actuality, this was a team Dunn, Stanley, and the Fever front office had created?  Another mess they didn't want to fully be responsible for?

While the WNBA has shown that women will have a voice, they need to also show that their loyal workers and top coaches on the come up need to be respected as well. Men should be respected equally as well in the WNBA. 

When speaking with Knox, he has already had a few interviews in the WNBA, college, and other ranks, so he is back in grind mode, per the usual. It has been a month since the unpopular decision, so Knox, while not happy with the decision, has accepted the fate, and moved on.

 Knox is a cool cat, so he is able to compartmentalize, elevate and continue to move forward. He understands the game within the game. He also understands the sports business can be a cold world, and the WNBA, while having some great young talent, still needs help with some internal issues before even thinking about pushing to NBA levels of success. 

Regardless, expect Knox to speak this week on the situation and if the WNBA was smart, they would make sure one of their top tier coaches bounces back somewhere. Hopefully they learned from the Brittney Griner situation; Keep your top tier talent in good situations in your league. 

Bottom line?  The WNBA needs to back their top coaches and instructors, much like they did Becky Hammon. No matter the race, gender, or any other issues. 

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