Blake Kibler ‘returning home’ to coach Whiteoak Wildcats
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
When one begins coaching, the goal is to usually become a varsity head coach, and for Blake Kibler, he’s achieving that goal and then some as he’ll not only become a high school boys varsity basketball head coach, but he’ll be doing so at his alma mater of Whiteoak High School.
Kibler was named the new Whiteoak Wildcats boys varsity basketball head coach this past week, replacing Jeremy McGraw, who coached the Wildcats the past three seasons. For Kibler, who is taking over a program that won four games last season, he’s looking forward to the challenge of rebuilding the Wildcats program.
“I'm very excited about where the program is headed,” Kibler told The Highland County Press. “We have very eager kids who are ready to play and give it their all. They are also top-notch kids who love the game of basketball.
“The part that I'm most excited about is rebuilding the elementary grades. We are building this program from the ground up, K-12. We want to start early and build a foundation of fundamentals for the younger ages for us to build upon once they get older.”
Kibler also spoke about what it is like to come back to his alma mater, as he’s formerly coached at youth levels and he’s been the Southern State Community College men’s basketball head coach in the past as well. Kibler was also a freshman when the Whiteoak Wildcats reached the Division IV State Semifinals.
“It is very exciting to come back and get to share some of my experiences as a kid going through Whiteoak,” he said. “As a player, we as a program were very successful, going to the Final Four my freshman year, going to the Elite Eight my sophomore year and going to districts my junior and senior year.
“My whole entire family graduated from Whiteoak, so this is special to be able to share this with my family and the community. It has always been a goal of mine (to be a varsity head coach), and the two years I was head coach at SSCC, I learned so much. The experiences I have had have led to this, and I'm very excited I get to take over at my hometown school.”
The new WHS head coach began coaching basketball at the young age of just 19 years old, so with around 11 years of coaching experience at various levels, including at Whiteoak, Hillsboro and Southern State, just how did he first become involved in coaching basketball?
“I first became involved in coaching when my principal in high school, J.R. Roush, approached me about coaching eighth grade basketball at Whiteoak,” Kibler said. “I have been hooked ever since.”
All coaches have mentors in coaching who they look up to, have been around or want to emulate, and Kibler is no different. Two of his coaching idols are his former head basketball coach at Whiteoak, Pat Hines, and current Duke men’s basketball head coach Mike Krzyzewski.
“The one coach that has always stuck out to me is Pat Hines. He has always been very supportive of me as a player and as a coach. He is a big influence on me,” Kibler said. “There is also Mike Krzyzewski at Duke. Anyone who knows me knows that Duke Basketball is very important to me, and ‘Coach K’ is a big reason why. We want to mimic that program and turn our program into one of the premier programs in the league and around the area.
“What Coach Hines and Coach K have taught me is that there is more to basketball than just basketball. Coaching basketball can provide opportunities to teach not only the game of basketball, but to teach kids life lessons. You always want to make sure each and every kid that goes through your program gets the best experiences to prepare them for the real world.”
With any basketball program, there will be different ways to coach a team or different ways the game will be played and coached. Kibler said he has a way he likes to see the game played, but a lot just depends on the personnel on the roster each given year.
“Basketball styles change from year to year based upon the personnel you have at hand,” he said. “We want lots of movement offensively and want to be able to read what defenses give us. Defensively, we want ball pressure and good help-side rotations. We want good, solid team defense. We want good team basketball on both sides of the floor.”
There are many who have helped get Kibler to his goal of coaching his alma mater, and he’s looking forward to it, but before it all really gets going, he had some people he wanted to thank.
“I want to take the time to thank Bright Local Schools and Ted Downing for all that you have done for me and my family. I want to thank the community for always supporting me,” Kibler said. “I want to thank my parents and my family for always being supportive and always reminding me to never settle for ordinary.
“I want to thank all my friends who have been there for me through thick and thin. Last but not least, I want to thank my wonderful wife. Behind every great man, there is a great woman. She has sacrificed a lot to help me continue my journey. I couldn't have picked a better partner.”
Kibler was named the new Whiteoak Wildcats boys varsity basketball head coach this past week, replacing Jeremy McGraw, who coached the Wildcats the past three seasons. For Kibler, who is taking over a program that won four games last season, he’s looking forward to the challenge of rebuilding the Wildcats program.
“I'm very excited about where the program is headed,” Kibler told The Highland County Press. “We have very eager kids who are ready to play and give it their all. They are also top-notch kids who love the game of basketball.
“The part that I'm most excited about is rebuilding the elementary grades. We are building this program from the ground up, K-12. We want to start early and build a foundation of fundamentals for the younger ages for us to build upon once they get older.”
Kibler also spoke about what it is like to come back to his alma mater, as he’s formerly coached at youth levels and he’s been the Southern State Community College men’s basketball head coach in the past as well. Kibler was also a freshman when the Whiteoak Wildcats reached the Division IV State Semifinals.
“It is very exciting to come back and get to share some of my experiences as a kid going through Whiteoak,” he said. “As a player, we as a program were very successful, going to the Final Four my freshman year, going to the Elite Eight my sophomore year and going to districts my junior and senior year.
“My whole entire family graduated from Whiteoak, so this is special to be able to share this with my family and the community. It has always been a goal of mine (to be a varsity head coach), and the two years I was head coach at SSCC, I learned so much. The experiences I have had have led to this, and I'm very excited I get to take over at my hometown school.”
The new WHS head coach began coaching basketball at the young age of just 19 years old, so with around 11 years of coaching experience at various levels, including at Whiteoak, Hillsboro and Southern State, just how did he first become involved in coaching basketball?
“I first became involved in coaching when my principal in high school, J.R. Roush, approached me about coaching eighth grade basketball at Whiteoak,” Kibler said. “I have been hooked ever since.”
All coaches have mentors in coaching who they look up to, have been around or want to emulate, and Kibler is no different. Two of his coaching idols are his former head basketball coach at Whiteoak, Pat Hines, and current Duke men’s basketball head coach Mike Krzyzewski.
“The one coach that has always stuck out to me is Pat Hines. He has always been very supportive of me as a player and as a coach. He is a big influence on me,” Kibler said. “There is also Mike Krzyzewski at Duke. Anyone who knows me knows that Duke Basketball is very important to me, and ‘Coach K’ is a big reason why. We want to mimic that program and turn our program into one of the premier programs in the league and around the area.
“What Coach Hines and Coach K have taught me is that there is more to basketball than just basketball. Coaching basketball can provide opportunities to teach not only the game of basketball, but to teach kids life lessons. You always want to make sure each and every kid that goes through your program gets the best experiences to prepare them for the real world.”
With any basketball program, there will be different ways to coach a team or different ways the game will be played and coached. Kibler said he has a way he likes to see the game played, but a lot just depends on the personnel on the roster each given year.
“Basketball styles change from year to year based upon the personnel you have at hand,” he said. “We want lots of movement offensively and want to be able to read what defenses give us. Defensively, we want ball pressure and good help-side rotations. We want good, solid team defense. We want good team basketball on both sides of the floor.”
There are many who have helped get Kibler to his goal of coaching his alma mater, and he’s looking forward to it, but before it all really gets going, he had some people he wanted to thank.
“I want to take the time to thank Bright Local Schools and Ted Downing for all that you have done for me and my family. I want to thank the community for always supporting me,” Kibler said. “I want to thank my parents and my family for always being supportive and always reminding me to never settle for ordinary.
“I want to thank all my friends who have been there for me through thick and thin. Last but not least, I want to thank my wonderful wife. Behind every great man, there is a great woman. She has sacrificed a lot to help me continue my journey. I couldn't have picked a better partner.”