Balls soar through the air, shoes squeak upon the shiny court flooring, and whistles sound as signals to the players to continue their drills.
The players practice passing, dribbling, defense, and scoring- all critical elements during a typical open gym session led by Rich Sizemore.
In a few short weeks, the varsity girls’ basketball team will officially begin training with Sizemore for the upcoming season, and the boys’ varsity team will also begin with a new head coach in Adam Ballard.Both coaches have deep ties to TC, and look forward to a smooth transition into the new season.
No stranger to the court of TC Roberson, Sizemore has a long history at the school beginning back in his own high school days. A Roberson graduate, he was a player on the Rams basketball team under the coaching of Buddy Baldwin.
He returned to the school as a coach soon after, first coaching the varsity girls’ team for seven years, and then moving to the JV boy’s team for another three years. When Baldwin retired in 1978, Sizemore took over for roughly the next 20 years. Now, Sizemore is returning to the world of coaching after an eight-year hiatus.
When you’ve been out as long as I have, you first ask yourself, ‘do I have time to do this the right way, with the energy and enthusiasm needed to excel?’” Sizemore said.
For him, the answer was obviously a yes.
“I didn’t want it to just be a job. I had to be able to look forward to coming to work every day, with the right amount of passion,” he said.
The decision to hire Sizemore coach was made late into the year, causing the girls team to get a slower start than in the past. Without a named coach, summer practices were limited, which, according to some players, created a potential disadvantage over other regional schools.
Although I knew several of the girls on the team previously, I haven’t had a chance to work with most of them prior to now,” Sizemore said.
Senior point guard Keila McCurry said she is eager to work with Sizemore. Although she has not yet been able to attend any of the open gym sessions, she said his reputation precedes him.
He’s a legend at TC, and I’ve heard a lot of good things about him from other players. I’m excited to have the chance to get to play under his direction,” she said.
Since the opening of TCR in 1962, the basketball programs have had an unusual consistency in their coaches. The varsity men’s team has had only had four coaches in the school’s history, beginning with Buddy Baldwin. Following his retirement, Sizemore took over, and was subsequently replaced by science teacher Kevin Keen, who coached the varsity team for eight years.
Along with teaching physical education classes, Ballard coached the JV boys’ basketball team for seven years, beginning in 2005. Last year, he worked as the boys’ varsity assistant coach. When Keen retired from coaching at the end of last season, Ballard was offered the position of head coach.
Chase Rucker, a senior forward, is excited to have Ballard back as his coach. Rucker, along with many other members of the varsity team had the opportunity to play under Ballard’s leadership during his days on the JV team. In his opinion, this consistency will make the transition to a new coach much easier.
He’s the best coach you can ask for, and by far the best I’ve played under,” said Rucker.
He really helps me to improve, and I’m already familiar with his style, which should help the transition.”
Junior Ross Griffin agrees.
This is a much bigger role for Ballard, with a lot more responsibility attached. If anyone could handle it, it would be him,” he said.
Over the last few years, the girls’ team has had less stability. In recent years Tim Epley, Stanley Wheless, and now Sizemore have all been named as coaches, making consistency harder to come by.
For some of the seniors on the team, they have had up to four different coaches in the duration of their time at Roberson, which can be very difficult to adjust to,” Sizemore said.
“Whatever I’m doing will be new to them, which will be tough.” Sizemore said.
The players practice passing, dribbling, defense, and scoring- all critical elements during a typical open gym session led by Rich Sizemore.
In a few short weeks, the varsity girls’ basketball team will officially begin training with Sizemore for the upcoming season, and the boys’ varsity team will also begin with a new head coach in Adam Ballard.Both coaches have deep ties to TC, and look forward to a smooth transition into the new season.
No stranger to the court of TC Roberson, Sizemore has a long history at the school beginning back in his own high school days. A Roberson graduate, he was a player on the Rams basketball team under the coaching of Buddy Baldwin.
He returned to the school as a coach soon after, first coaching the varsity girls’ team for seven years, and then moving to the JV boy’s team for another three years. When Baldwin retired in 1978, Sizemore took over for roughly the next 20 years. Now, Sizemore is returning to the world of coaching after an eight-year hiatus.
When you’ve been out as long as I have, you first ask yourself, ‘do I have time to do this the right way, with the energy and enthusiasm needed to excel?’” Sizemore said.
For him, the answer was obviously a yes.
“I didn’t want it to just be a job. I had to be able to look forward to coming to work every day, with the right amount of passion,” he said.
The decision to hire Sizemore coach was made late into the year, causing the girls team to get a slower start than in the past. Without a named coach, summer practices were limited, which, according to some players, created a potential disadvantage over other regional schools.
Although I knew several of the girls on the team previously, I haven’t had a chance to work with most of them prior to now,” Sizemore said.
Senior point guard Keila McCurry said she is eager to work with Sizemore. Although she has not yet been able to attend any of the open gym sessions, she said his reputation precedes him.
He’s a legend at TC, and I’ve heard a lot of good things about him from other players. I’m excited to have the chance to get to play under his direction,” she said.
Since the opening of TCR in 1962, the basketball programs have had an unusual consistency in their coaches. The varsity men’s team has had only had four coaches in the school’s history, beginning with Buddy Baldwin. Following his retirement, Sizemore took over, and was subsequently replaced by science teacher Kevin Keen, who coached the varsity team for eight years.
Along with teaching physical education classes, Ballard coached the JV boys’ basketball team for seven years, beginning in 2005. Last year, he worked as the boys’ varsity assistant coach. When Keen retired from coaching at the end of last season, Ballard was offered the position of head coach.
Chase Rucker, a senior forward, is excited to have Ballard back as his coach. Rucker, along with many other members of the varsity team had the opportunity to play under Ballard’s leadership during his days on the JV team. In his opinion, this consistency will make the transition to a new coach much easier.
He’s the best coach you can ask for, and by far the best I’ve played under,” said Rucker.
He really helps me to improve, and I’m already familiar with his style, which should help the transition.”
Junior Ross Griffin agrees.
This is a much bigger role for Ballard, with a lot more responsibility attached. If anyone could handle it, it would be him,” he said.
Over the last few years, the girls’ team has had less stability. In recent years Tim Epley, Stanley Wheless, and now Sizemore have all been named as coaches, making consistency harder to come by.
For some of the seniors on the team, they have had up to four different coaches in the duration of their time at Roberson, which can be very difficult to adjust to,” Sizemore said.
“Whatever I’m doing will be new to them, which will be tough.” Sizemore said.