Double-T time: ‘Dream school’ awaits West’s Tshabola
6-6, 320-pound prized sophomore building skill for Ohio State.
Tegra Tshabola knows much could change during the course of his final two years of high school, but the Lakota West offensive tackle said he feels a little better having a college commitment in hand.
With a few weeks left in his sophomore year, Tshabola committed to Ohio State University last month, and now he’s back to focusing on what he can do to help Lakota West improve on a 7-4 season this fall. The Firebirds resumed offseason workouts Tuesday on the first day the Ohio High School Athletic Association permitted teams to do so after COVID-19 pandemic restrictions were placed in March.
Tshabola, a four-star recruit who 247sports.com ranks as the No. 2 prospect in Ohio for the Class of 2022, committed April 23.
“I talked to my family, and we talked about injuries that could happen, so we are planning for the future and decided now is the best time to do it,” Tshabola said.
The 6-foot-6, 320-pound lineman had offers from schools like LSU, Michigan, Oklahoma, Florida, Louisville and Texas A&M, but Ohio State was the obvious choice for kid who grew up in a house full of Buckeye fans.
Tshabola said Ohio State was kind of his “dream school.” LSU, Oklahoma and Tennessee were the next closest contenders. He hasn’t heard from many other recruiters since he committed, but Ohio State graduate assistant coach Kennedy Cook has been in touch a couple times a week throughout periods when recruiters can contact players, and Tshabola said he appreciates how caring he seems.
“We had a set guidelines a team would have to meet,” Tshabola said of narrowing down his list. “It could not be a rebuilding process — we don’t have time to be doing that — and it had to be a team with a good coaching staff that cares about players and is committed to winning. That, and it’s close to home.”
There’s a little extra motivation for Tshabola to “make the right choice” and go on to a successful college career. His older brothers, Emmanuel, Michael and Dan, all played football at West and tried to go on to the next level but didn’t
make it. Emmanuel, a firstteam All-Greater Miami Conference linebacker in 2013, played one year at Thomas More College. Michael was a second-team All-GMC linebacker as a senior in 2015, and Dan played defensive line at West before graduating in 2018.
Another brother, Israel, played basketball at West and graduated in 2019.
“My brothers all had their share of the recruiting experience, but they were all smart and doing well in other (pursuits),” Tshabola said. “That motivates me a little bit. It’s a lot of pressure, but good pressure in some ways. It’s the drive I have to be the one that makes it far in football.”
Tshabola’s brothers are the ones who always point out his rankings to him on recruiting sites like Rivals. com and 247sports.com, as they seem to check his profile daily, he said. The latter site has him ranked as the No. 6 offensive tackle in the nation and No. 69 prospect overall.
Being so highly considered nationally is “something to be proud of,” he said, but it hasn’t been a goal to shine on those lists. Tshabola is more interested in proving himself on the field.
“I’ve really focused a lot on getting stronger the last year, and I got a lot better at that, and bringing aggressiveness on the field,” said
Tshabola, who began playing football in second grade with the West Chester Outlaws. “Those are two of the biggest things I’m working on. This offseason I’ve been working on technique. The best linemen are the ones that go 100 percent, so I’m working on effort.”
The 2019 first-team AllGreater Miami Conference pick played a role in West’s quick rebuild under Tom Bolden and has high expectations for his future with the Firebirds and beyond. He was on the varsity roster as a freshman in 2018 when West went 4-6 — its third straight losing season — and failed to reach the playoffs for a fourth straight year. Bolden was tasked with turning things around after leaving perennial powerhouse Colerain last offseason, and the Firebirds saw quick results with a 6-2 start in 2019, including a win over rival Lakota East.
Tshabola is expecting even more gains for the program this fall, as the Firebirds have made some exciting adjustments to the playbook and look forward to seeing how those come together.
“It was good getting back with the team (Tuesday),” Tshabola said. “We’re expecting to be a lot better than last year, so we’re looking forward to putting in the work to make it happen.”