August 14, 2025 • 8 mins
Tom Gamble with In-Game Sports is the creator and organizer of the Skyline Chili Crosstown Showdown, which will be in its 28th season starting on August 22nd.
Tom joined us to preview the event, and to discuss the 2025 area high school football season.
Podcasts of The Mo Egger Radio Show are a service of Longnecks Sports Grill.
Listen to the show live weekday afternoons 3:00 - 6:00 on ESPN1530.
Listen Live: ESPN1530.com/listen
Get more: https://linktr.ee/MoEgger
Follow on X: @MoEgger
Instagram too: @MoEgger
Tom joined us to preview the event, and to discuss the 2025 area high school football season.
Podcasts of The Mo Egger Radio Show are a service of Longnecks Sports Grill.
Listen to the show live weekday afternoons 3:00 - 6:00 on ESPN1530.
Listen Live: ESPN1530.com/listen
Get more: https://linktr.ee/MoEgger
Follow on X: @MoEgger
Instagram too: @MoEgger
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Pike again in ten minutes plus Brendaman and Jones on baseball.
The twenty eighth Skyline Chili Crosstown Showdown kicks off a
week from tomorrow. It's the first Friday in all three
states in the Tri State area.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
This is remarkable. It's quite a.
Speaker 1 (00:18):
Feat and it's a I think, at least in this area,
and I'll venture to say in the country, there is
no better high school football showcase than the Skyline Chili
Crosstown Showdown. The baby of our next guest we haven't
talked to in a while, our buddy Tom Gamble. It's
awesome to heavy. What's going on?
Speaker 3 (00:36):
We How are you? Man? Glad to be here?
Speaker 4 (00:37):
It doesn't it feel outside like it's perfect football weather man?
Speaker 3 (00:43):
Oh Man? Yeah, it's crazy, isn't it.
Speaker 5 (00:47):
You know it's funny.
Speaker 4 (00:48):
It started in nineteen ninety eight with two Friday night
doubleheaders at Knippert Stadium. Then we went to you know,
all day Saturdays, and it morphed into one day. But
Nipper was always the hub until when the NCAA Levy
n it's you can't use as a third party vendor,
I e. Me, you can't rent a BCS school facility.
(01:11):
So all of a sudden I.
Speaker 3 (01:12):
Found that out.
Speaker 4 (01:13):
At the beginning of August, we had the kind of
juggle things and started moving. It went from the beginning weekends,
if you will, to now over ten weeks and going
to campus games on Friday nights. It's really been cool.
I mean, it's it's the essence of high school football.
It is, I mean, and it's and I don't think
there's a better place if anybody hasn't ever been to Lawrenceburg.
So our opener next Friday is East Central at Lawrenceburg.
(01:36):
And literally the setting is US fifty. I mean if
called the pit Lawrenceburg High School. The stadium sits there.
You can drive on fifty, park your car. I mean,
I wouldn't advise this, but you can park it off
to the side and literally watch the game. It's one
of the most unique and cool settings. And these are
two programs that pretty much win every year, and it's
it's a great way to start year number twenty eight.
Speaker 3 (01:59):
As you mentioned, So.
Speaker 4 (02:00):
They all start, You're right, the tri state, Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana.
So we're going southeast Indiana for our open er, East
Central at Lawrensburg a week from tomorrow.
Speaker 1 (02:09):
So this obviously is gonna sort of go for most
of the high school football season. Are you releasing new
games every week? How's that gonna work?
Speaker 4 (02:18):
Yeah, I'm gonna give you the first three because we
go Indiana, Northern Kentucky, and Ohio. And it's it's not
I mean, you can figure I mean, if somebody wanted
to spend the time and figure it out.
Speaker 5 (02:27):
Yeah, but that's time.
Speaker 3 (02:27):
We've done it.
Speaker 4 (02:28):
And the last two weeks, weeks nine and ten, we're
actually gonna put some on our social We're gonna have
fans vote, We're gonna kind of take because you never
know by the time you get to week nine and ten,
I mean it's you know, we've.
Speaker 3 (02:40):
Got a lot of really good games.
Speaker 4 (02:42):
We kind of wanted to leave it open, let people participate.
So Week two were going to Cooper High School in
Northern Kentucky. They host Highlands. It's a rematch of last
year's Class five A state semi finals. Two teams, Highlands
dropping the four as based on enrollment Cooper at five,
but they're both expected to challenge to maybe get back
to Lexington. In week three, it's Edgewood at Bain and
(03:05):
it's the first on campus game ever for Hamilton Bay.
They literally have built a brand new, state of the art,
very nice facility. So we've got a Southeast Indiana, Northern
Kentucky and.
Speaker 3 (03:16):
Ohio games to get things rolling.
Speaker 4 (03:18):
And we try to well, we try to spread it around.
There's a lot of great football, as you know, and
you know we'll have some GCL, some GMC, some ECC,
some CHL. Try to spread the love if you will,
because there are so many good programs and the only
reason you can do this for almost three decades is
a you gotta have great sponsors, of which Skyline, Chillian
Mercy Hialth or the Pedicans sports Medicine are both have
(03:39):
both been there.
Speaker 3 (03:40):
Skyland has been incredible as you will, though I know
you're a fan, and.
Speaker 4 (03:43):
Then you gotta have you gotta have quality football and
that's what we have here. So it's it's easy to
showcase it when you've got such great players, great programs,
and I mean, you know, you turn on Saturday, you
turn on Sunday and college in the NFL and you'll
see guys and you can say, like we do, man, he.
Speaker 3 (04:01):
Played in the showdown.
Speaker 5 (04:01):
You just it's it's.
Speaker 4 (04:03):
Funny sometimes how you watch and you forget about guys, right,
I mean, it's it's there's that many.
Speaker 1 (04:10):
Tom Gamble, the creator organizer of the Skyline Chile Crosstown
Showdown with In Game Sports. It starts next Friday. You
could follow all season long on Twitter at xtown Showdown.
Give me one or two of the major storylines going
into the Greater Cincinnati High school football season.
Speaker 5 (04:30):
Well, I think I think I'm gonna take two.
Speaker 4 (04:32):
Teams last year in Ohio that made state finals, and
that would be Moler Division one and Anderson Division two.
Speaker 3 (04:39):
I mean, and you look at Molar, I mean they've.
Speaker 4 (04:41):
You know, I think everybody just bought last year. They were,
you know, destined to win it. They made the state
final and then they lost to a team out of Columbus.
Speaker 5 (04:49):
But I think with Matt Ponatowski.
Speaker 4 (04:51):
Who was the Ohio reigning Mister Football and who's also
the player of the Year in Ohio and baseball, I mean,
this is so and this and this guy's real talented
and he's got a rocket arm.
Speaker 3 (05:02):
Tremendous baseball player.
Speaker 4 (05:03):
I think Ken Mohler with a lot of returneys. You know,
can they get back there and get over the hump.
You know, it's been a while in Division one, and
then and then you've got you know, typically you've got
Saint Xavier, You've always got Lakota West, You've got you know,
there are those programs in Division two. Anderson they lose
a lot, but Evan Dryer and Anderson, he just reloads
and Anderson has suddenly become a perennial D two power.
Speaker 3 (05:26):
So I think that over here.
Speaker 4 (05:28):
Because you know last year those two made it to
the final, and Anderson.
Speaker 3 (05:31):
Played in that big snow game and you know it
went down to the end.
Speaker 4 (05:35):
And then in Kentucky it's Beechwood again, right, I mean
they just every year they keep one. But you've got
now Highlands dropping a foray with Covenan Catholic, so they're
back as rivals.
Speaker 3 (05:46):
Cooper in five A made.
Speaker 4 (05:47):
It to the state final each of the last two years,
So there's a lot.
Speaker 5 (05:51):
I think those are the ones.
Speaker 4 (05:53):
You know, one thing about high school football in Greater Cincinnati,
MO is a little bit like college football. You know,
you can tell me who those teams are in college football,
right you're in Ohio State, your Georgia, your Cleansing, whatever.
And I think most of the.
Speaker 3 (06:07):
Top teams here year in and year out.
Speaker 5 (06:10):
And it's not easy to stay there, you know.
Speaker 3 (06:13):
I remember Kerry Combs way back in.
Speaker 5 (06:14):
The day at Cole Ray when he would tell me,
he said.
Speaker 4 (06:16):
You know, it's one thing to get there, then you
have to stay there because everybody's looking to knock you off.
And I said this for decades when Princeton and Mohler
were the prominent teams in this area.
Speaker 3 (06:28):
Teams had one option or two options.
Speaker 4 (06:31):
They could just get better or they could just keep
getting drilled because Moller and Princeton back in the Jerry
Fouls Pat Mancuso days, they were that good.
Speaker 5 (06:39):
Right.
Speaker 4 (06:39):
So I think it's we've kind of gotten it's more
spread out, there's more I think there's more parody. But
you still have those teams that really are the ones
that you point to early on to get out of
the area and go to the state.
Speaker 1 (06:53):
Our guy, Tom Gamble, the creator and organizer of the
Skyline Chili Crosstown Showdown with In Game Sports. It gets
underway next Friday, the first Friday for all three states
in the Tri state area, and it's a terrific showdown.
I have driven past that stadium in Lawrenceburg a billion times.
Speaker 2 (07:11):
It looks like it's awesome.
Speaker 1 (07:13):
Yes, yes, it's going to be a beautiful setting for
East Central and Lawrenceburg. Next Friday at seven o'clock. You
could follow the twenty twenty five Skyline Chili Crosstown Showdown
on Twitter at xtown Showdown. It's always awesome to have
you and we'll chat soon.
Speaker 3 (07:29):
Well appreciated it.
Speaker 5 (07:30):
How about this? We're in August, middle August in the.
Speaker 3 (07:33):
Red Pup game out in the Wildcard. How about that?
Speaker 1 (07:35):
It's awesome. Yeah, like it's awesome. You know, you know
what it's like doing this when they're good and it's
it's fun.
Speaker 5 (07:42):
I do.
Speaker 4 (07:42):
I'm right there with you both. Thanks appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (07:44):
You're the man. That's our guy. Tom Gamble.
Speaker 1 (07:46):
Skyline Chili Crosstown Showdown underway next Friday. Tony Pike joins
us next on ESPN fifteen.
Speaker 3 (07:53):
Thirty Cincinnati's ESPN fifteen thirty.
Speaker 2 (07:57):
Traffic from the uc Health trump.
Speaker 1 (08:00):
The uc Health Backneck and Spine Center offers innovative treatments
to improve quality of life, with convenient locations across Greater
Cincinnati and northern Kentucky.
Speaker 2 (08:10):
Learn more at UCHealth dot com.
Speaker 1 (08:13):
Southbound seventy five after Union Center Boulevard.
Speaker 2 (08:16):
It's an accident on the right shoulder. Police are there
on scene. Kemper Road, it's another accident.
Speaker 1 (08:21):
This is at Hamilton Avenue eastbound State Route one twenty
two accident before Robinson Vale Road.
Speaker 2 (08:27):
I met Exelic with trap
Pike again in ten minutes plus Brendaman and Jones on baseball.
The twenty eighth Skyline Chili Crosstown Showdown kicks off a
week from tomorrow. It's the first Friday in all three
states in the Tri State area.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
This is remarkable. It's quite a.
Speaker 1 (00:18):
Feat and it's a I think, at least in this area,
and I'll venture to say in the country, there is
no better high school football showcase than the Skyline Chili
Crosstown Showdown. The baby of our next guest we haven't
talked to in a while, our buddy Tom Gamble. It's
awesome to heavy. What's going on?
Speaker 3 (00:36):
We How are you? Man? Glad to be here?
Speaker 4 (00:37):
It doesn't it feel outside like it's perfect football weather man?
Speaker 3 (00:43):
Oh Man? Yeah, it's crazy, isn't it.
Speaker 5 (00:47):
You know it's funny.
Speaker 4 (00:48):
It started in nineteen ninety eight with two Friday night
doubleheaders at Knippert Stadium. Then we went to you know,
all day Saturdays, and it morphed into one day. But
Nipper was always the hub until when the NCAA Levy
n it's you can't use as a third party vendor,
I e. Me, you can't rent a BCS school facility.
(01:11):
So all of a sudden I.
Speaker 3 (01:12):
Found that out.
Speaker 4 (01:13):
At the beginning of August, we had the kind of
juggle things and started moving. It went from the beginning weekends,
if you will, to now over ten weeks and going
to campus games on Friday nights. It's really been cool.
I mean, it's it's the essence of high school football.
It is, I mean, and it's and I don't think
there's a better place if anybody hasn't ever been to Lawrenceburg.
So our opener next Friday is East Central at Lawrenceburg.
(01:36):
And literally the setting is US fifty. I mean if
called the pit Lawrenceburg High School. The stadium sits there.
You can drive on fifty, park your car. I mean,
I wouldn't advise this, but you can park it off
to the side and literally watch the game. It's one
of the most unique and cool settings. And these are
two programs that pretty much win every year, and it's
it's a great way to start year number twenty eight.
Speaker 3 (01:59):
As you mentioned, So.
Speaker 4 (02:00):
They all start, You're right, the tri state, Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana.
So we're going southeast Indiana for our open er, East
Central at Lawrensburg a week from tomorrow.
Speaker 1 (02:09):
So this obviously is gonna sort of go for most
of the high school football season. Are you releasing new
games every week? How's that gonna work?
Speaker 4 (02:18):
Yeah, I'm gonna give you the first three because we
go Indiana, Northern Kentucky, and Ohio. And it's it's not
I mean, you can figure I mean, if somebody wanted
to spend the time and figure it out.
Speaker 5 (02:27):
Yeah, but that's time.
Speaker 3 (02:27):
We've done it.
Speaker 4 (02:28):
And the last two weeks, weeks nine and ten, we're
actually gonna put some on our social We're gonna have
fans vote, We're gonna kind of take because you never
know by the time you get to week nine and ten,
I mean it's you know, we've.
Speaker 3 (02:40):
Got a lot of really good games.
Speaker 4 (02:42):
We kind of wanted to leave it open, let people participate.
So Week two were going to Cooper High School in
Northern Kentucky. They host Highlands. It's a rematch of last
year's Class five A state semi finals. Two teams, Highlands
dropping the four as based on enrollment Cooper at five,
but they're both expected to challenge to maybe get back
to Lexington. In week three, it's Edgewood at Bain and
(03:05):
it's the first on campus game ever for Hamilton Bay.
They literally have built a brand new, state of the art,
very nice facility. So we've got a Southeast Indiana, Northern
Kentucky and.
Speaker 3 (03:16):
Ohio games to get things rolling.
Speaker 4 (03:18):
And we try to well, we try to spread it around.
There's a lot of great football, as you know, and
you know we'll have some GCL, some GMC, some ECC,
some CHL. Try to spread the love if you will,
because there are so many good programs and the only
reason you can do this for almost three decades is
a you gotta have great sponsors, of which Skyline, Chillian
Mercy Hialth or the Pedicans sports Medicine are both have
(03:39):
both been there.
Speaker 3 (03:40):
Skyland has been incredible as you will, though I know
you're a fan, and.
Speaker 4 (03:43):
Then you gotta have you gotta have quality football and
that's what we have here. So it's it's easy to
showcase it when you've got such great players, great programs,
and I mean, you know, you turn on Saturday, you
turn on Sunday and college in the NFL and you'll
see guys and you can say, like we do, man, he.
Speaker 3 (04:01):
Played in the showdown.
Speaker 5 (04:01):
You just it's it's.
Speaker 4 (04:03):
Funny sometimes how you watch and you forget about guys, right,
I mean, it's it's there's that many.
Speaker 1 (04:10):
Tom Gamble, the creator organizer of the Skyline Chile Crosstown
Showdown with In Game Sports. It starts next Friday. You
could follow all season long on Twitter at xtown Showdown.
Give me one or two of the major storylines going
into the Greater Cincinnati High school football season.
Speaker 5 (04:30):
Well, I think I think I'm gonna take two.
Speaker 4 (04:32):
Teams last year in Ohio that made state finals, and
that would be Moler Division one and Anderson Division two.
Speaker 3 (04:39):
I mean, and you look at Molar, I mean they've.
Speaker 4 (04:41):
You know, I think everybody just bought last year. They were,
you know, destined to win it. They made the state
final and then they lost to a team out of Columbus.
Speaker 5 (04:49):
But I think with Matt Ponatowski.
Speaker 4 (04:51):
Who was the Ohio reigning Mister Football and who's also
the player of the Year in Ohio and baseball, I mean,
this is so and this and this guy's real talented
and he's got a rocket arm.
Speaker 3 (05:02):
Tremendous baseball player.
Speaker 4 (05:03):
I think Ken Mohler with a lot of returneys. You know,
can they get back there and get over the hump.
You know, it's been a while in Division one, and
then and then you've got you know, typically you've got
Saint Xavier, You've always got Lakota West, You've got you know,
there are those programs in Division two. Anderson they lose
a lot, but Evan Dryer and Anderson, he just reloads
and Anderson has suddenly become a perennial D two power.
Speaker 3 (05:26):
So I think that over here.
Speaker 4 (05:28):
Because you know last year those two made it to
the final, and Anderson.
Speaker 3 (05:31):
Played in that big snow game and you know it
went down to the end.
Speaker 4 (05:35):
And then in Kentucky it's Beechwood again, right, I mean
they just every year they keep one. But you've got
now Highlands dropping a foray with Covenan Catholic, so they're
back as rivals.
Speaker 3 (05:46):
Cooper in five A made.
Speaker 4 (05:47):
It to the state final each of the last two years,
So there's a lot.
Speaker 5 (05:51):
I think those are the ones.
Speaker 4 (05:53):
You know, one thing about high school football in Greater Cincinnati,
MO is a little bit like college football. You know,
you can tell me who those teams are in college football,
right you're in Ohio State, your Georgia, your Cleansing, whatever.
And I think most of the.
Speaker 3 (06:07):
Top teams here year in and year out.
Speaker 5 (06:10):
And it's not easy to stay there, you know.
Speaker 3 (06:13):
I remember Kerry Combs way back in.
Speaker 5 (06:14):
The day at Cole Ray when he would tell me,
he said.
Speaker 4 (06:16):
You know, it's one thing to get there, then you
have to stay there because everybody's looking to knock you off.
And I said this for decades when Princeton and Mohler
were the prominent teams in this area.
Speaker 3 (06:28):
Teams had one option or two options.
Speaker 4 (06:31):
They could just get better or they could just keep
getting drilled because Moller and Princeton back in the Jerry
Fouls Pat Mancuso days, they were that good.
Speaker 5 (06:39):
Right.
Speaker 4 (06:39):
So I think it's we've kind of gotten it's more
spread out, there's more I think there's more parody. But
you still have those teams that really are the ones
that you point to early on to get out of
the area and go to the state.
Speaker 1 (06:53):
Our guy, Tom Gamble, the creator and organizer of the
Skyline Chili Crosstown Showdown with In Game Sports. It gets
underway next Friday, the first Friday for all three states
in the Tri state area, and it's a terrific showdown.
I have driven past that stadium in Lawrenceburg a billion times.
Speaker 2 (07:11):
It looks like it's awesome.
Speaker 1 (07:13):
Yes, yes, it's going to be a beautiful setting for
East Central and Lawrenceburg. Next Friday at seven o'clock. You
could follow the twenty twenty five Skyline Chili Crosstown Showdown
on Twitter at xtown Showdown. It's always awesome to have
you and we'll chat soon.
Speaker 3 (07:29):
Well appreciated it.
Speaker 5 (07:30):
How about this? We're in August, middle August in the.
Speaker 3 (07:33):
Red Pup game out in the Wildcard. How about that?
Speaker 1 (07:35):
It's awesome. Yeah, like it's awesome. You know, you know
what it's like doing this when they're good and it's
it's fun.
Speaker 5 (07:42):
I do.
Speaker 4 (07:42):
I'm right there with you both. Thanks appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (07:44):
You're the man. That's our guy. Tom Gamble.
Speaker 1 (07:46):
Skyline Chili Crosstown Showdown underway next Friday. Tony Pike joins
us next on ESPN fifteen.
Speaker 3 (07:53):
Thirty Cincinnati's ESPN fifteen thirty.
Speaker 2 (07:57):
Traffic from the uc Health trump.
Speaker 1 (08:00):
The uc Health Backneck and Spine Center offers innovative treatments
to improve quality of life, with convenient locations across Greater
Cincinnati and northern Kentucky.
Speaker 2 (08:10):
Learn more at UCHealth dot com.
Speaker 1 (08:13):
Southbound seventy five after Union Center Boulevard.
Speaker 2 (08:16):
It's an accident on the right shoulder. Police are there
on scene. Kemper Road, it's another accident.
Speaker 1 (08:21):
This is at Hamilton Avenue eastbound State Route one twenty
two accident before Robinson Vale Road.
Speaker 2 (08:27):
I met Exelic with trap
Mo Egger News
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