Before Joe Burrow was an NFL star, he was a small-town kid growing up in southeastern Ohio.Those who have coached him along the way say Burrow has not forgotten where he came from.Sam Smathers coached Burrow as a youth. Smathers assisted author Scott Burson in writing "From Bulldog to Bengal: The Joe Burrow Story Through the Eyes of His Hometown."Ahead of its release, Smathers walked WLWT through the making of a champion."We're just, we're very proud, very proud of him. He's just Joe," Smathers said. Plains, Ohio is where it all started for Burrow.Smathers has video footage from when Burrow was a quarterback in third grade. With no one open downfield, he decided to run the ball. Videos from sixth grade show Burrow executing more plays."They bring back all the memories. All the memories come back," Smathers said as he watched a highlight reel. "I've watched him grow up, and I've watched damn near every game he's ever played.Fast forward to high school, Burrow became more competitive."He was very competitive in practice and the game, but he wasn't a rah-rah guy," Smathers said. Burrow led by example."Everybody can see that. He's a silent leader," Smathers said. Burrow led Athens High School to the playoffs and the state championship his senior year."That whole group of kids that came through there was just a talented group. You get that every so often, a good group of kids coming through, and Joe was part of that," Smathers said. Burrow also excelled in basketball. Academics came easy to him. Teachers described him as shy and likeable. Students voted him most likely to become famous in addition to most athletic.Smathers gives a lot of credit to Burrow's parents, Jim and Robin Burrow. "They're just that type of people. Down to earth, well-grounded, and that's where Joey gets it," Smathers said. "He hasn't forgotten. He knows where he's from. He's proud of where he's from. I know he is," Smathers said. That was evident throughout college at Louisiana State University and during his Heisman trophy moment, where he highlighted the issue of food insecurity in Athens County."People here understand that he's fed a lot of people, and they're very grateful for what he's done here," Smathers said. And what he continues to do as a Cincinnati Bengal."When we win it, we're gonna win it, and it'll be our way, and way we're going to do it," Smathers said. Smathers said he helped write the book with blessings from Burrow and his parents.It's set to be released in the spring.More information can be found, here.

The 2021 Atlantic hurricane season will officially come to an end on Tuesday, Nov. 30, 2021.The season stretched from May 22 through Nov. 30.The active season brought 14 tropical storms, three Category 1 hurricanes with winds up to 95 mph, two Category 3 hurricanes with winds nearly 129 mph, and two powerful Category 4 hurricanes with winds near 156 mph.This left a total of 21 storms being named throughout the entire season. Nine of these named storms made landfall in the United States.Hurricane Ida was the most powerful storm to make landfall in the United States in 2021 with maximum winds topping out at 150 mph. Ida made landfall at Port Fourchon, Louisiana, at 11:55 a.m. on Aug. 29.The 2021 hurricane season will end as the third most active on record.

Sam Boje knows a thing or two about flags. He noticed that the flag pole in his neighbor, Barbara Miller's yard hadn't flown a flag in a few years."The flag pole has really, basically for the last three years or so just been a flag pole there and I didn't know how to take it down or want to take it down," Miller said. "We've always had a flag there until he passed away four years ago...and I wasn't really wanting to mess with putting the flag up and down every day."Taking matters into his own hands, Sam started to raise a flag for Miller every morning.Sam's interest in flags really sparked when he started learning about them towards the end of his 5th-grade year. And that's when he started sharing what he learned with Miller. While nothing can bring Russ back, Miller knows his memory will always be honored, all thanks to Sam."Russ would be so tickled that the flag is flying again because he just loved it," she said."If you know your neighbor, then you know someone that will help you out if something happens," Sam said.Eventually, Sam said he wants to collect a flag from every country.