CLEVELAND — Funeral arrangements have been set for a former Elyria High School football coach who was killed in a fire last week.
27-year-old De'van Bogard, who shined on the football field for Glenville High School before later playing for the Ohio State Buckeyes, died following a house fire in Elyria on October 12.
Visitation for Bogard will be held on Thursday, October 21 from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the Thomas G. Smith Funeral Home, located at 14601 St. Clair Ave. Funeral services will take place on Friday at 1:30 p.m. at Bump Taylor Field, located at the corner of Arlington and Thornhill near the Greater Friendship Baptist Church. The funeral is moving outside due to the large number of people who are expected to attend.
A star wide receiver and safety as a teenager, Bogard was a member of the Glenville Tarblooders' 2009 Division I state runner-up team as a sophomore before eventually becoming one of the top recruits in the country. His skills landed him a scholarship offer from OSU, where he quickly earned the praises of new head coach Urban Meyer.
Unfortunately, Bogard's college career would not go as planned, as three torn ACLs ruined his chances of making a major impact. He still totaled 13 tackles over three seasons as a linebacker, and was part of the Buckeyes' 2014 national championship squad.
After graduating from Ohio State, Bogard joined Elyria in 2019 as linebackers coach under Devlin Culliver. Last Friday, tributes were held in honor of Bogard during Elyria's senior night game against Amherst.
As a good luck charm, the players wore the initials "DB" on the sides of their helmets, and the No. 30 — the same number Bogard wore as a member of Ohio State's 2014 national championship team — was prominent throughout.
Bogard's family was on the sidelines Friday night with Bogard's son Jaden, whom the team is also playing for. One player handed the ball directly to Jaden after the team scored its second touchdown of the game.
"I'm just super grateful that they're honoring him in a positive way because that's all he would want," Taylor Osbey, Jaden's mother, said. Even the touchdown that they made and they passed it to our son Jaden, that was the cutest thing. My heart is just so full of joy."
Elyria went on to beat Amherst 36-13 to improve to 5-4, their best season in six years.