By David Rice, Times Correspondent
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
TAMPA HEIGHTS — Howard W. Blake High School is as deeply rooted in Tampa's history as cigar factories and pirate ships.
But in a county where athletic achievements can make or break a school's reputation, the Yellow Jackets have trailed their local rivals in recent years.
The Blake boys basketball team will have a chance to return the school's name to prominence when it takes on Leesburg today in the Class 4A state semifinals in Lakeland.
The winner plays in the state championship game Saturday at 12:05 p.m.
"It means a lot to our athletic program because for years we've been working on improving things," Blake principal Jacqueline Haynes said. "We've got a lot of competition within our area. Plant and Jefferson are popular destinations for athletes, so we've had to work hard to maintain coaching staffs that can keep our programs playing at a high level.
"I think that the success of this team shows our potential to have a great athletic program."
The struggles of recent years do not reflect the school's sporting history. Prior to 1956, the school was known as the Don Thompson Vocational High School. As the Thompson Yellow Jackets, the school won back-to-back championships in basketball in the late '40s.
After changing its name to Blake, the school became a champion of the gridiron in 1969.
Chuck White has been involved with the school since its days of being known as Thompson. Back then, he was known as Chuck "Trick Shot" White and was a part of the back-to-back championship basketball teams of 1947-48. The present day team has White excited for his alma mater once again.
"It's great to see this Blake team renewing the winning ways we had back then," White said. "Today's athletes have a lot more distractions to overcome than we had. In my day, there were no video games or cell phones, we just played basketball all the time.
"I think it's amazing what they've been able to accomplish given all they have going on, and it says a lot about the coaching staff."
For second-year athletic director Jesse Salters, the success story coming together in front of him is a reality that he thought was possible when the season began.
"These student-athletes have a willingness to listen to their coaches and apply what they say on the court," said Salters, who led Chamberlain High to the state tournament as a player in 1989 and 1990. "It doesn't hurt to have talent, either.
"I told the players at the start of the year that if they had the desire to get there that they could do this, so I'm proud of them for being where they are."
Around the community, the buzz about the Yellow Jackets has been growing as the team has progressed through the state tournament.
"There is a really positive feel around here right now," Haynes said. "The community support has been amazing. People that I see in the grocery store are coming up to me and wishing the school good luck.
"We took three busloads of people to Fort Myers for the last round, and on Friday we'll be sending the team off with an ovation."
David Rice can be reached at hillsnews@sptimes.com.