Myron Ross, Wissahickon Junior
Myron Ross is a bona fide star on the Wissahickon football team.
But you’d never know it.
“At school, I heard from a teacher what a great kid he was, and they didn’t even know he was a football player,” Trojan coach John DeSimone. “He’s so humble and talks about things other than football.”
Ross may have been able to keep his football heroics under wraps in the classroom, but on the gridiron, it’s another story. So dominant was the Trojan junior in his team’s 31-22 win over Pottsgrove in week two of the season that he was the recipient of all three weekly awards given by the team.
“This is the first time this has happened at Wissahickon since I have taken over the program,” DeSimone said.
Ross was quick to deflect credit for his big performance to his teammates.
“It’s a good thing, but I didn’t do it by myself,” he said. “I don’t want to take too much credit for it.”
Ross was named defensive player of the week for grading out the highest in a performance that included 14 tackles, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and two tackles for losses.
“I could definitely see him going to a big-time program as a defensive back,” DeSimone said. “He’s a very good defensive player. He just has a nose for the ball. I can’t say enough about him defensively.”
He was also the team’s offensive player of the week for rushing over 130 yards for the second straight week and scoring on a 54-yard touchdown run. Ross - at 6-1, 200 pounds - is the first big back DeSimone has had at Wissahickon.
“He’s a special talent,” the Trojans’ coach said. “For a kid that big, it’s just amazing how fast he is. During track as a sophomore, he was running a 10.8, 10.9.
“With that kind of size and that kind of speed, he’s a back that has big-play potential every time he has the ball because of the speed factor. He can take it to the end zone on any play.”
Ross also creates havoc on special teams, and in week two, he made it a clean sweep when he was named special teams player of the week. With the Trojans clinging to a 7-6 halftime lead over the Falcons, Ross took the second half kickoff 93 yards for a touchdown. He also was the team’s emergency punter since the Trojans had lost two of their punters to injuries. He did well, according to DeSimone.
“I knew he was a special player, but it was one of those situations – he had to wait his turn,” the Trojans’ coach said. “We had a running back last year – Vaughn Jacobs – who rushed for over 1,700 yards and was named the Player of the Year in the American Conference.
“He just had to be patient, knowing he would get his turn. The opportunity came this year, and he’s definitely making the most of it.”
Ross made good use of the time he spent behind Jacobs on the depth chart last year.
“I learned a lot just from watching him,” he said. “I enjoyed watching him.
“He taught me how to be patient, and when a hole opens up, take it, and that I have to trust myself.”
Talk to Ross, and it doesn’t take long to figure out he takes more pride in his defense than the numbers he puts up on offense.
“You really want to shut teams out – don’t let the other team score,” he said. “We have a game plan coming in, and we know what we have to do.
“The defense is the key. We just have to execute.”
Ross, who competes in the 100, 200 and 4x100 in track, has been playing football since he was in fourth grade. He grew up watching his cousin, Robbie Hill, playing for Wissahickon and dreamed of one day following in his footsteps.
It hasn’t taken the talented junior long to make quite a name for himself. Ross, it seems, knows only one way to play the game – hard. All the time.
“Watching the last film we made a comment about how – there was a punt, and he was going full speed, and he didn’t even have the ball,” DeSimone said. “He was going to make a block. It was just great how he hustles when he doesn’t have the ball.”
Beyond that, Ross, according to his coach, is a quality person off the field as well.
“The greatest thing about Myron is he’s a terrific kid,” DeSimone said. “He’s very coachable, he’s eager to learn, he elevates the play of his teammates, and he’s always hustling.
“That’s the great part of being a football coach. Not only do you see these kids develop on the field, but you see them develop as people. Just seeing him growing and maturing – it’s just really great to see that.”
Ross has a singular goal for his junior season. It has nothing to do with personal accomplishments.
“We expect to get another championship, but we’re low on depth so everybody has to work hard,” he said. “Everybody has to do what they’re supposed to do if we want a chance to win a championship.”
