‘This has been their backyard’: Dewayne Zimmerman raises sons to be Massillon Tigers

MASSILLON — There is no question. Chase Bond and Deangelo Zimmerman were born to be Massillon Tigers. Just ask their dad, Dewayne Zimmerman, himself a former Tigers football player.

Dewayne Zimmerman remains involved in the Massillon community and the football program. He also partners with JP Simon, another Massillon coach, in Simon Says Promotions, where he does custom screen printing and embroidery.

He's thrilled his two sons are playing for the Tigers and helping them to a 4-0 start heading into Friday's showdown with St. Edward, the state's top-ranked Division I team. Massillon is ranked No. 3 in Division II and beat St. Ed's a year ago, as the Eagles were on their way to a second straight state title.

For Deangelo and Chase, this a dream come true. They have gone from being kids who looked up to Massillon players and high fived them as they took the field to now playing their part in the program's continued success.

For Dewayne, a 2006 Massillon graduate, this is a continuation of his longtime journey within the program. He is a freshman coach now and has been part of the Tiger program as a coach for 10 years. He enjoys his role in developing ninth-graders to play for varsity head coach Nate Moore.

“Coach Moore has a great program going here, and I just want to do my job here to make sure these young boys are ready for Friday nights and to compete,” Dewayne said.

Dewayne comes from a big family. With their hard-working parents putting in long hours, he and his siblings learned about responsibility at a young age.

“It was a little difficult there to get that one-on-one with pops or my mother at that time,” he said. “They were constantly working. As young kids, they worked 12-15 hour shifts, and once I had kids at a young age, I had made it a goal to be able to be present with everything they wanted to do with their life.”

Dewayne played defensive tackle for the Tigers and was on the 2005 state runner-up team member. After football, he went to Stark State College and worked assorted job. However, his No. 1 job was raising his children as a teenager. Dewayne was 17 years old when Chase was born. He currently has four children (Antonio Cornelious, Chase Bond, Deangelo and Mariah Zimmerman) and considers it to be the best moment to ever happen to him.

“I wouldn’t change it for anything. Having both of my boys here at a young age also helped me. I was young and spiraled in a different direction as a young chump — I guess, but having them, I wouldn’t change it for anything.”

Chase Bond, Deangelo Zimmerman grew up at Paul Brown Tiger Stadium

It didn’t take too much convincing for Chase and Deangelo to follow in their father’s footsteps. They grew up right around the corner from Paul Brown Tiger Stadium. As active toddlers, they were at the stadium every day instead of roughhousing around the Zimmerman household.

“They were fortunate enough to be able to have Paul Brown (Tiger Stadium) here as their backyard,” Dewayne said. “So we spent a lot of time here and growing up, I’ve coached here for my 10th year now. Since they were little, this has been their backyard. We kept the ruckus out of the house.”

Chase and Deangelo have similar traits in their games. Some that they inherited from their dad but also coached up by Dewayne to improve their talents.

“(It’s) just their motors,” Dewayne said. “Just nonstop going. That is something that I enjoyed watching them and letting the coaches coach them up.”

Throughout their childhood, Dewayne coached Chase and Deangelo until they reached the varsity level.

Deangelo, a 6-foot, 220-pound junior, played both defensive end and fullback in his first varsity start. He's also spent time as a lineman, safety, linebacker in his football career and even saw snaps as a quarterback.

Chase is a 6-4, 255-pound anchor of the strong Massillon defensive front. He played defensive end and tight end in the past before putting all his focus into being a four-technique defensive end, which he plans to play at in college.

Beyond football the two brothers have different athletic interests, including Chase wrestling in the winter, while Deangelo focuses on basketball.

“They were a lot better than I was at that age,” Dewayne said. “They are more consistent and they work hard. Not saying that I didn’t do any of those things, but they had someone in their corner to push him through the way.”

Talk of fundamentals, having violent hands and what happened at practice fill the conversations among Chase, Deangelo and their father. Deangleo remembers his dad getting on Chase about the usage of his hands after a game. They prioritized engaging with their hands when getting off blocks and footwork.

“Whenever I get there, I need to use my feet and my hands,” Deangelo said. "I got to make sure that is my No. 1 priority. I feel that’s my big one right there.”

However, the most important lesson the brothers learned from Dewayne is earning their keep in football and life.

“Some of the biggest ones probably are stay patient and work hard no matter what,” Chase said. “And do what’s right and not take the easy way out. He could’ve taken the easy way out in plenty of things.”

Chase Bond always a Massillon Tiger, but soon to be a Wolfpack

Chase Bond dreamt of becoming a Massillon Tiger. He cherishes all his childhood memories on Friday nights, especially being in the tunnel, high-fiving the varsity players before running to the field.

“I’m very grateful for it,” he said. “Every Friday, it’s easy to veer off and forget about like where you are really at and let it sink in, especially your senior year. Almost every Friday when we were in the tunnel, I was one of those little kids who would ask for high-fives, so I made sure all the kids got high-fives. I’m just grateful to be a Massillon Tiger. I always wanted to be a Tiger.”

Bond became a highly recruited college prospect after his junior season last fall. He received seven FBS offers while remaining under the radar from other Division I schools. He is ranked No. 42 in the state, according to 247Sports.com

“Everyone’s recruiting process is different,” Bond said. “Mine was a little different. I had an injury that put me back, but a lot of schools … I was really big on a lot of schools that had the chance to offer me. Every school has seen me from around here. Every school has seen me in person and seen me play."

North Carolina State came around June and showed interest in him. He didn’t expect to commit when he made his official visit but couldn’t resist what the Wolfpack had to offer.

“Down there, it was so genuine,” Bond said. “I went on my official visit. There was me and two receivers. It was just the atmosphere. I  always wanted to go down south.”

With Bond already choosing his future school, he wants to leave Massillon on a high note, obviously with bringing home a state title on his mind.

“I want to make history,” he said. “I think that’s everyone’s goal on the team. If not, there’s the problem. Always have a high energy. I don’t really know how to explain it. Just whatever you put, go out there and do the best wherever you are at.”

Little brother with big dreams

Deangelo Zimmerman has another year at Massillon, but carries plenty of expectations and goals before he graduates. His biggest goal is to be a Massillon Wall of Fame member one day.

“It would be amazing because I grew up right around the corner from here, and I was here throughout my entire childhood,” Deangelo said. “It will be just amazing knowing that I stamped myself like I said earlier in this atmosphere.”

While he was on varsity last year as a sophomore, this is Deangelo's first season in the starting rotation. Both his dad and Moore stay on him to keep improving. It’s not easy for a player to be asked to play both ways, but he's learning.

“Hydrate and while I’m out there, just give it all that I got,” Deangelo said. “That’s all I could really say. Give it all you got and trust the man next to you.”

Deangelo is just a year younger than Chase. He's admired his older brother and was proud when Chase committed to North Carolina State. It inspires Deangelo to do what he wants to accomplish while creating a lane for himself.

“He’s my role model,” Deangelo said. “I followed him every step of the way. Now, I’m at the point where I want to go, branch off, and make my own path. Make my own impact inside the facility and the campus.

“I really see myself doing the same thing next year. Hopefully both sides of the ball. Next year, I want to be better, stronger, faster and more impactful.”

More: Stark County-Area High School Football Top 5 Power Poll after four weeks of 2023 season

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Chase Bond, Deangelo Zimmerman follow in dad's footsteps at Massillon