HAMILTON, Ohio - Badin named Gerry Weisgerber as the new boys’ basketball coach on Thursday.
Weisgerber previously guided the Rams for 18 seasons – from 1981 to 1999 – and had a record of 272-141.
“I’m excited to be back,” Weisgerber said in a release. “I’ve had some opportunities but I said the only place I would ever come back to be a head coach is Badin High School. This is a comfortable fit.”
Weisgerber, 62, had been an assistant under Rams head coach Matt Thompson for the past two seasons. Thompson stepped down earlier this month after three seasons.
“When I first came over to assist Matt, I had no thought of coming back as the head coach,” Weisgerber said. “But about the middle of this season, Matt was talking about stepping down and I felt like, ‘yes, I can do this again.’ You’re away from it for a lot of years and you get re-energized. This feels good.”
Badin Athletic Director Geoff Melzer made the announcement to the boys’ basketball team gathered in Badin’s St. Basil’s Chapel Thursday afternoon.
“I’m excited – how can you not be?” Melzer said. “Gerry brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the job. His track record speaks for itself. When a Gerry Weisgerber knocks on your door, that’s a good thing. It doesn’t happen every day.”
The Rams won the 1988 Division III state title with a 28-0 record under Weisgerber. (That team included Thompson and current Ohio State women’s basketball coach Kevin McGuff as a starter).
Badin also reached the Division II state semifinals in 1997 and ’98.
“We had a number of good candidates based on the staff that Matt Thompson had put together,” Melzer said. “We’re very pleased to have Gerry back as our head coach. He’s a proven winner.”
Weisgerber left Badin following the 1998-99 school year to become athletic director and assistant principal at Lakota West where he served for 14 years. He’s been retired for 14 years, but spent the last four seasons as an assistant.
The Rams were 9-15 overall, including 2-8 in the Greater Catholic League, but Weisgerber likes the direction of the team.
“There’s a good group of skilled basketball players in the system right now,” Weisgerber said. “We had a lot of success at the junior varsity and freshman levels this year and I think we can be pretty good in the next few years. Of course that’s all on paper. You still have to convert that to the court.”
