The End Of The Road For Warsaw’s Doug Ogle
March 9, 2020 at 12:20 a.m.
The End Of The Road For Warsaw’s Doug Ogle
By Roger Grossman-
This is nothing new. He sends me messages all of the time.
But this one came before 8 a.m., asking me to meet with him later that afternoon.
It seemed odd, but I met with him.
He handed me a letter that said, in short, that when this boys’ basketball season ends, his coaching career will end with it.
It was not a huge surprise. The back half of this season has clearly worn on him – a season that started 8-1 had ended at 11-9, including losses in three straight and 6 of 7 to end the regular season.
Everyone — players, coaches, fans and, yes, even broadcasters — has watched in disbelief as the season slipped away.
The whispers of what might be going wrong were everywhere. But those whispers aren’t new.
The facts are:
• Doug Ogle won more games than any other coach in Warsaw Tiger basketball history, except for one — Al Rhodes.
• He coached more seasons and in more games than any coach in Tiger history, except for one — Al Rhodes.
Ever since he took over the program from the legendary Rhodes in 2002, the comparisons were inevitable. He knew that. He signed up for that. And for most of 18 years he bore the burden of being the one who followed the legend.
And after all this time, the one question still remains: “Is Doug Ogle a great coach, a good coach or a lousy coach?” The answer depends on who you ask.
We can say this: He’s not Al Rhodes.
And what’s wrong with that? He shouldn’t have to have been. He should not have tried to be! He should have taken what he had learned under his mentor, merged those concepts with his own ideas and then adjusted along the way…and he did that.
Most coaches who follow legends escape our memories. Name the person who followed Bob Knight, Mike Ditka, John Wooden or Digger Phelps. You can’t, can you?
As his time on the bench ends, it would be perfectly accurate to say that virtually every game he coached was coached within a swirl of controversy and angst. There are people who will say that every game the Tigers lost in these 18 years was his fault, and every game they won was in spite of him.
They blame him for players who moved away and went on to do big things in the game of basketball. One even accused him of “verbal and mental abuse” in response to Monday’s announcement.
Others share a quite different picture.
Lakeview Middle School Assistant Principal Todd Braddock said, “What I remember most about Coach Ogle is his thoughtfulness and unselfish attitude toward others. I owe so much of where I am today to his leadership and influence on my life.”
Eastbrook Boys Basketball Head Coach and former Tiger Greg Allison added, “Coach taught us integrity, teamwork and giving of yourself for the betterment of the group. I am currently a varsity basketball coach because I want to teach boys the game of basketball and life lessons, just like Coach Ogle did for me and my teammates.”
Former Tiger Shaun Cabrera says, “Playing for Coach Ogle was such a blessing for me. I am forever grateful for him. He not only wanted us to become better basketball players, but most importantly become better men.”
Many such tributes were sent my way, including a phone call from Nic Moore all the way from France.
So can you see the odd juxtaposition we find ourselves in here? How can one man be so loved by some and so despised by others? Is this man of whom people speak so glowingly and with such affection be the same man who is (fairly or unfairly) held responsible for the Plumlees not playing here, for the number of players who have quit the program or for rough finishes to seasons like this season?
He is.
How do we make sense of this? In the final analysis, we can’t.
As the caretaker of the history of Tiger Basketball, I would offer to you that we won’t fully be able to appreciate Doug Ogle’s contribution for a while. Time will give us a clearer vision of his time on the Tiger bench. Some of you are angry he’s leaving. Some of you are angry he’s been here this long.
But be sure of this — Tiger Basketball will field a team next season, and the season after that and the season after that. As they do, keep in mind that none of the games that Warsaw loses or expectations that are not met from this point forward will be Doug Ogle’s fault.
He’ll be funneling his competitive spirit into an intense game of scrabble with his family, spoiling grandkids and taking his wife on vacations wherever she wants to go.
This is nothing new. He sends me messages all of the time.
But this one came before 8 a.m., asking me to meet with him later that afternoon.
It seemed odd, but I met with him.
He handed me a letter that said, in short, that when this boys’ basketball season ends, his coaching career will end with it.
It was not a huge surprise. The back half of this season has clearly worn on him – a season that started 8-1 had ended at 11-9, including losses in three straight and 6 of 7 to end the regular season.
Everyone — players, coaches, fans and, yes, even broadcasters — has watched in disbelief as the season slipped away.
The whispers of what might be going wrong were everywhere. But those whispers aren’t new.
The facts are:
• Doug Ogle won more games than any other coach in Warsaw Tiger basketball history, except for one — Al Rhodes.
• He coached more seasons and in more games than any coach in Tiger history, except for one — Al Rhodes.
Ever since he took over the program from the legendary Rhodes in 2002, the comparisons were inevitable. He knew that. He signed up for that. And for most of 18 years he bore the burden of being the one who followed the legend.
And after all this time, the one question still remains: “Is Doug Ogle a great coach, a good coach or a lousy coach?” The answer depends on who you ask.
We can say this: He’s not Al Rhodes.
And what’s wrong with that? He shouldn’t have to have been. He should not have tried to be! He should have taken what he had learned under his mentor, merged those concepts with his own ideas and then adjusted along the way…and he did that.
Most coaches who follow legends escape our memories. Name the person who followed Bob Knight, Mike Ditka, John Wooden or Digger Phelps. You can’t, can you?
As his time on the bench ends, it would be perfectly accurate to say that virtually every game he coached was coached within a swirl of controversy and angst. There are people who will say that every game the Tigers lost in these 18 years was his fault, and every game they won was in spite of him.
They blame him for players who moved away and went on to do big things in the game of basketball. One even accused him of “verbal and mental abuse” in response to Monday’s announcement.
Others share a quite different picture.
Lakeview Middle School Assistant Principal Todd Braddock said, “What I remember most about Coach Ogle is his thoughtfulness and unselfish attitude toward others. I owe so much of where I am today to his leadership and influence on my life.”
Eastbrook Boys Basketball Head Coach and former Tiger Greg Allison added, “Coach taught us integrity, teamwork and giving of yourself for the betterment of the group. I am currently a varsity basketball coach because I want to teach boys the game of basketball and life lessons, just like Coach Ogle did for me and my teammates.”
Former Tiger Shaun Cabrera says, “Playing for Coach Ogle was such a blessing for me. I am forever grateful for him. He not only wanted us to become better basketball players, but most importantly become better men.”
Many such tributes were sent my way, including a phone call from Nic Moore all the way from France.
So can you see the odd juxtaposition we find ourselves in here? How can one man be so loved by some and so despised by others? Is this man of whom people speak so glowingly and with such affection be the same man who is (fairly or unfairly) held responsible for the Plumlees not playing here, for the number of players who have quit the program or for rough finishes to seasons like this season?
He is.
How do we make sense of this? In the final analysis, we can’t.
As the caretaker of the history of Tiger Basketball, I would offer to you that we won’t fully be able to appreciate Doug Ogle’s contribution for a while. Time will give us a clearer vision of his time on the Tiger bench. Some of you are angry he’s leaving. Some of you are angry he’s been here this long.
But be sure of this — Tiger Basketball will field a team next season, and the season after that and the season after that. As they do, keep in mind that none of the games that Warsaw loses or expectations that are not met from this point forward will be Doug Ogle’s fault.
He’ll be funneling his competitive spirit into an intense game of scrabble with his family, spoiling grandkids and taking his wife on vacations wherever she wants to go.
Have a news tip? Email [email protected] or Call/Text 360-922-3092