Notebook: Coaching Changes At Big Programs
This season, like all season that came before it, is full of coaching changes. Some of them giving way to new head coaches looking at their first year and others looking into a much larger program with high expectations. Here are some of the highlights of the offseason.
- Avon is looking at a new head coach as former Muncie Central HC Jeff Holloway is taking over. He has mild success at his previous stop as he started at Union (Modoc) for six seasons before taking the Muncie Central job for the last three. At Muncie Central, Holloway went 36-37 with 2015-16 being his only winning season. Previously at Union, he finished the last three years strong winning 16, 17, and 14 games with two Sectional Championships. Avon will be a much different look than Muncie Central but both are 4A programs that play most of their schedule against Indianapolis area schools.
- Jason Speer will take over at Bloomington North after being their girls coach for the last two season. This is a program that could have immediate success with the talent on the roster as well as Jason’s previous experience in the Sectional. He used to be the head coach at Columbus North from 2008 to 2015 with quite a bit of success. Columbus North is apart of the same Sectional that Bloomington North is in so he has the talent and the familiarity to handle the new job.
- Carmel is looking at a new head coach after Scott Heady leaves to take over the coaching position at Marian University. They have hired from within promoting Ryan Osborn, a longtime assistant at Carmel. Things won’t change to drastically but maybe more of an emphasis on playing faster. With an inside hire, their looks to be little fall off early on and so far, Osborn has looked the part through the month of June.
- Longtime McCutcheon head coach Rick Peckinpaugh has retired and new blood is in for the Mavericks as former Tri-County head coach Tyler Scherer is taking over. Scherer is a younger coach but has had quite a bit of success at he country school. He won two Sectional Championships in his six seasons topping 20 wins in both of those years. He has never had a losing season and went 104-42 in his tenure at Tri-County. He inherits a roster that lost most of their depth but still retains one of the best players in the state in Robert Phinisee. The first year could have some bumps and bruises but a soft Lafayette talent base could lend a hand.
- One of the teams that is setup best to have a successful season is South Bend Riley but they also have a new head coach in with former Bethel College standout Eric Brand taking over the reigns. He was formerly on staff at Warren Central down in Indianapolis. He has plenty of coaching experience at places like Baylor, Tyler Junior College, and Texas State. This, however, is his first dive into being a head coach and he could see instant success up North in his first year.
Other Coaching Changes of Note:
- Anderson – Mike Elliott
- East Chicago Central – Marcus Jefferson
- Fishers – Matt Moore
- Fort Wayne South – J.J. Foster
- Greenwood Christian – Jonny Marlin
- Kokomo – Robert Wonnell
- Marquette Catholic – Fred Mooney