Dave Tharp
1998 Shrine Bowl The 6-foot-4, 252-pound Tharp helped Smith Center reach the Class 3A state championship game where the Redmen lost in heartbreaking fashion to Silver Lake. Tharp earned All Class Top 11 recognition from the Wichita Eagle. Andy Stewart rushed for than 1,500 yards, Justin Montgomery and Josh Ramirez collected more than 800 and quarterback Dave King went for more than 750 yards behind the blocking of a huge offensive line that featured Tharp, fellow Shrine Bowler Andy Gwennap, center Daren Overmiller and guards Brett Hutchinson and Josias Lambert.
Justin Montgomery 1999 Shrine Bowl
Montgomery was a three-year starter for Smith Center at fullback and linebacker and also kicked. In 1997, he helped the Redmen finish second in Class 3A with a 13-1 record and finish as sub-state runner-up in 1998 with a 12-1 record. Montgomery was a Top 11 pick in Kansas and a Shrine Bowl captain. He collected all-area selections by the Salina Journal and Hays Daily News and was named one of the Top 20 Kansas/Nebraska players by the Hastings Tribune and Top 25 Kansas-Missouri players by the Kansas City Star. Montgomery attended Kansas State. As a senior, he collected second team All-Big 12 honors as a defensive tackle. Montgomery played for the NFL Europe’s Rhein Fire, attended St. Louis Rams training camp in 2004 and then played for the Wichita Wild of the indoor professional league, where he earned all-star honors in 2008.
Kyle Schenk
1999 Shrine Bowl The 6-foot-1, 185-pound Schenk was a guard and strong safety and is widely considered one of the hardest hitters in Smith Center history. Statistically, Schenk helped the 1998 Redmen team rank as one of the most dominant in state history. Smith Center’s average margin of victory was 50.8 points per game, then a state record, according to the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame. The Redmen eventually lost 9-7 in the sub-state championship game at home to Conway Springs, a team that won its first state title the following week with a 42-17 victory versus Fredonia. Schenk played at Trinity International and finished as the Trojans’ all-time leading tackler and was a threetime all-league second team selection from 2000 to 2002. He has coached at four different stops and is now in his third season as NAIA Malone (Ohio) University’s defensive coordinator.
Garrett Spiess
2000 Shrine Bowl The 6-1, 270-pound Spiess was an all-state tackle for the 1999 team that won the Class 3A state championship. He and center Kaid Hommon were the leaders for a line that blocked for a standout backfield that included Tim Weltmer and Tracey Purden.
22 Brothers Through The Bone The Greats