1991 Whitko Players Relive 'Hoosiers II'
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
It was dubbed "Hoosiers II." Not many folks from the Whitko area will ever forget it.
Never in his years of basketball coaching had Bill Patrick coached a team with a losing season, but in 1991, the picture looked grim.
At the low point of the season, the Wildcats were 5-8, and more than a few people thought Patrick was looking at his first losing season. But that 1991 team did something no one expected them to do - they made a trip to play in the state championship tourney.
After that 5-8 point, the 1991 squad made a surprising turnaround. The team was undefeated the rest of the season, won the sectional, won the regional and won the semistate. In fact, the Wildcats did not lose another game until they fell to Gary Roosevelt in the first round of the state championship.
That team included Steve Nicodemus, Rich Tenney, Rod Thomas, Brook Allen and Chad Darley and made history by taking Whitko (and Patrick) to its first and only state championship.
When those players look back at the 1991 season, fond memories creep back into their minds.
"We were 5-8 at one time, and coach Patrick told us to pull together," said Allen. "And we did. Then we won the rest of our games."
"I remember how much work we put into that season," said Thomas. "We really had a good time after we started working together and came together as a team."
"I remember the way we started out so poorly and turned around to finish successfully," said Nicodemus. "We did a 360 degree turnaround, and that still sticks out to me."
They also remember some distinct qualities about Patrick's coaching style that they did not understand until some time later.
"As a coach, he got the most out of his players," said Nicodemus. "He takes the talent players have and gets them to use it. He is a good teacher of the game.
"When you are playing for him, he seems to be a negative person. You could win by 40 points and he will still tell you what you did wrong. That's hard to get used to, but when you look back on it, you see that it worked. He got us to do what we needed to do."
"Coach Patrick had a lot of desire to do well, and he pushed his players to do that," said Thomas. "It was hard to see the positive at the time, but coach Patrick was able to get the best effort out of everyone. It took me a while to see that, but we were a better quality team, and he got quite a bit out of us."
"Bill was tough on me, maybe tougher on me than on anyone else," said Allen. "But now that I'm older, I see that coach Patrick taught me a lot about life."
Allen also recalled one game when Patrick, usually a quiet, intense coach, acted out of character.
"When we played Marion at the semistate, we were getting beat by 16 or 18 points at halftime," said Allen. "In the lockerroom, coach Patrick got mad and raised his voice. It was the first time he had ever really yelled at us, and it upset us. It upset us and made us mad enough to go out and win the game. I think he saw his chance to win the semistate and he didn't want it to slip away. We saw another side of him that day."
However, that one instance did not change one player's opinion of Patrick.
"Coach Patrick is a very good person," said Nicodemus. "He sets a good example for the kids he coaches. He doesn't use language the kids don't need to hear. He also sets a good example as a person."
Notes: Steve Nicodemus, who was one of the most recognized and decorated players in Whitko basketball history, won the Trester Award for mental attitude and was named to the All-State team as well as the All-Conference Three Rivers Conference team in 1991. He went on to play basketball and graduate from Michigan State in 1996. He currently resides in Ohio with his wife, Amy, and works in sales at Land-O-Lakes. ... Rod Thomas, who was one of only two team members to play in every quarter during season, led the 1991 Wildcats in assists with 124. He lives in Indianapolis, where he is a social worker who assists children... Brook Allen led the '91 squad in three-point percentage after shooting 10 of 18 from behind the arc. Allen is currently employed at the Tom Kelley Auto SuperStore in Fort Wayne. [[In-content Ad]]
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It was dubbed "Hoosiers II." Not many folks from the Whitko area will ever forget it.
Never in his years of basketball coaching had Bill Patrick coached a team with a losing season, but in 1991, the picture looked grim.
At the low point of the season, the Wildcats were 5-8, and more than a few people thought Patrick was looking at his first losing season. But that 1991 team did something no one expected them to do - they made a trip to play in the state championship tourney.
After that 5-8 point, the 1991 squad made a surprising turnaround. The team was undefeated the rest of the season, won the sectional, won the regional and won the semistate. In fact, the Wildcats did not lose another game until they fell to Gary Roosevelt in the first round of the state championship.
That team included Steve Nicodemus, Rich Tenney, Rod Thomas, Brook Allen and Chad Darley and made history by taking Whitko (and Patrick) to its first and only state championship.
When those players look back at the 1991 season, fond memories creep back into their minds.
"We were 5-8 at one time, and coach Patrick told us to pull together," said Allen. "And we did. Then we won the rest of our games."
"I remember how much work we put into that season," said Thomas. "We really had a good time after we started working together and came together as a team."
"I remember the way we started out so poorly and turned around to finish successfully," said Nicodemus. "We did a 360 degree turnaround, and that still sticks out to me."
They also remember some distinct qualities about Patrick's coaching style that they did not understand until some time later.
"As a coach, he got the most out of his players," said Nicodemus. "He takes the talent players have and gets them to use it. He is a good teacher of the game.
"When you are playing for him, he seems to be a negative person. You could win by 40 points and he will still tell you what you did wrong. That's hard to get used to, but when you look back on it, you see that it worked. He got us to do what we needed to do."
"Coach Patrick had a lot of desire to do well, and he pushed his players to do that," said Thomas. "It was hard to see the positive at the time, but coach Patrick was able to get the best effort out of everyone. It took me a while to see that, but we were a better quality team, and he got quite a bit out of us."
"Bill was tough on me, maybe tougher on me than on anyone else," said Allen. "But now that I'm older, I see that coach Patrick taught me a lot about life."
Allen also recalled one game when Patrick, usually a quiet, intense coach, acted out of character.
"When we played Marion at the semistate, we were getting beat by 16 or 18 points at halftime," said Allen. "In the lockerroom, coach Patrick got mad and raised his voice. It was the first time he had ever really yelled at us, and it upset us. It upset us and made us mad enough to go out and win the game. I think he saw his chance to win the semistate and he didn't want it to slip away. We saw another side of him that day."
However, that one instance did not change one player's opinion of Patrick.
"Coach Patrick is a very good person," said Nicodemus. "He sets a good example for the kids he coaches. He doesn't use language the kids don't need to hear. He also sets a good example as a person."
Notes: Steve Nicodemus, who was one of the most recognized and decorated players in Whitko basketball history, won the Trester Award for mental attitude and was named to the All-State team as well as the All-Conference Three Rivers Conference team in 1991. He went on to play basketball and graduate from Michigan State in 1996. He currently resides in Ohio with his wife, Amy, and works in sales at Land-O-Lakes. ... Rod Thomas, who was one of only two team members to play in every quarter during season, led the 1991 Wildcats in assists with 124. He lives in Indianapolis, where he is a social worker who assists children... Brook Allen led the '91 squad in three-point percentage after shooting 10 of 18 from behind the arc. Allen is currently employed at the Tom Kelley Auto SuperStore in Fort Wayne. [[In-content Ad]]