Patch tapped as new Fort basketball coach (05/13/03)

FORT RECOVERY — Pending school board approval, a former Jay County basketball player will take over the Fort Recovery boys basketball program.

Brian Patch, a 1995 graduate of JCHS who attended Ball State University in Muncie, has been tapped as the next coach of the Indians. The Fort Recovery School Board will vote on the recommendation to hire him at its meeting to-night.

“Myself and the committee felt that some important qualities were his teaching skills, his basketball knowledge, his communication skills and promoting sportsmanship,” said FRHS athletics director Barb Sautbine. “I’m excited, and I’m really looking forward to working with him.

“I thought he was outstanding in his interview. He’s young, and he’s enthusiastic. I think he’s going to bring a lot to the Fort Recovery program.”

Sautbine was joined on the coach search committee by principal Ed Snyder, superintendent Pat Niekamp and booster club member Randy Diller. They slated Patch to replace Joe Bruns, who resigned in April after seven years at the helm of the Indians’ program.

Patch, 26, expressed his excitement at the possibility of receiving his first head coaching job in a phone interview Monday.

“For me, it’s always been a dream job to go there,” he said. “They have history and tradition.

“Obviously we’re from Portland and went to school at Jay County. It’s an opportunity for me to get home and be near family.”

Patch’s wife Anne (Wendel) is a class of 1996 JCHS graduate. They have a 1-year-old daughter named Olivia.

Patch has had a variety of coaching experience since graduating from JCHS, where he played for sectional championship teams in 1994 and 1995. The 1995 squad went on to the regional championship game.

He began his coaching career in Jay County as a junior high and freshman assistant for several seasons. He also spent a year as the freshman coach at Wes-Del.

For the past three seasons Patch has been a varsity assis-tant with the Lake Central Indians in St. John, Ind. under former Jay County coach Jim Black. Lake Central had a 14-8 record last year, and recorded similar marks in each of the previous two season.

Patch said his experience under Black, current Jay County coach Craig Teagle and Xavier University assistant coach John Groce have prepared him for his first head coaching job.

“I’ve worked with some of the better coaches in the game of basketball,” he said. “Working with those kind of people has prepared me to be a head coach. I know I have to bring hard work and dedication.

“I think I’ll bring an excitement and work ethic that the people of Fort Recovery will be proud of.”

Bruns was 10-11 in his final year with the Tribe. He went 86-70 at Fort Recovery with a trip to the state championship game in 1999.

He also won a league championship in the Midwest Athletic Conference that season. The MAC produced another state champion in basketball this year as Marion Local ran to the crown.

“For me to have my first coaching job in one of the top conferences in Ohio is a challenge for me,” said Patch. “It’d be a challenge for anybody. It’s something that’s going to take a lot of hard work. I’m excited to be in that conference.

“I’m just excited and honored to hopefully be the next head coach with the approval of the board. I hope to continue the tradition at Fort Recovery.”[[In-content Ad]]