South-suburban basketball is rich in history. When it comes to high school basketball in Illinois, it’s difficult to top the combination of the culture, success and tradition in the south suburbs.
Some of the biggest basketball names, colorful coaches, storied gyms and powerful programs have highlighted the sport for more than 100 years.
Thornton, Thornridge, Thornwood, Bloom, Homewood-Flossmoor and Hillcrest have combined for 15 appearances in the state championship game in the last 90 years.
The list of legends — Lou Boudreau, Jerry Colangelo, Quinn Buckner, Lloyd Batts, Wes Mason, 1972 Thornridge, Mike Flaherty, Tracy Webster, Brandon Cole, the old SICA East, Antwaan Randle El, Julian Wright, Eddy Curry and Tyler Ulis among them — is all but endless.
Basketball in the south suburbs remains extremely relevant today, but there has been an exodus of talent to the city in the last decade.
The coaching jobs in the south suburbs are some of the highest-profile ones in high school basketball. But with that profile comes arguably the most pressure and highest expectations from their fan bases of any jobs in the state. Still, the jobs are coveted.
Much like it previously did with Chicago Catholic League coaching jobs, the City/Suburban Hoops Report set out to identify which high school basketball coaching job is viewed as the best in the south suburbs.
Identifying the exact geographical area of the south suburbs is never easy. For the purpose of this poll, the proverbial line used was U.S. Highway 45 — basically the corridor extending from Sandburg in Orland Park south to Lincoln-Way East in Frankfort.
Schools such as Bolingbrook, the Joliets, Lockport and others were too southwest suburban to be included in the traditional south suburbs.
Coaches throughout the south suburbs, past and present, and others with strong ties to south-suburban basketball were polled. They were told to consider several factors in ranking the best basketball coaching jobs, including winning and tradition; location and access to players; salary/pay for coaches and teachers; and facilities and resources.
Those surveyed were asked to rank the top five coaching jobs, based on the aforementioned criteria. All together, 18 individuals submitted votes. First-place votes received 10 points, second-place votes eight points, third-place votes seven points, fourth-place votes five points and fifth-place votes three points.
Interesting results from the voting
When it came to the best job in the south suburbs, it wasn’t even close: Homewood-Flossmoor was the runaway winner. The H-F job received 15 of the 18 first-place votes.
The only other jobs to receive a first-place vote were Hillcrest with two and Thornton with one.
H-F was listed on every ballot, and Hillcrest was listed on 17 of the 18. Those two jobs were by far the most mentioned.
The final results:
1. Homewood-Flossmoor (173)
2. Hillcrest (118)
3. Bloom (81)
4. Thornton (70)
5. Lincoln-Way East (57)
6. Marian Catholic (46)
7. Rich (23)
8. Thornwood (13)
9. Crete-Monee (8)
10. Kankakee (3)
Here are a few of the off-the-record quotes from those who were surveyed:
Homewood-Flossmoor
H-F is the best job and it’s not even close. Great athletes, facilities, money and academics. … The template there is set: academics, athletics and the environment are just so good. … A lot of discipline is in place at H-F. … In the south suburbs, that tight community is a big help there. … There is a lot of great to offset some wild expectations or parents and some people there. They have to remember it’s still high school. … The facilities are top-notch. The talent pool is there. And the feeder program with Junior Vikings is in place. … Cream of the crop of jobs in the south suburbs. … Probably the best facilities in northern Illinois and maybe the entire state. … Just a great job. Might be one of the best jobs in the entire state. … HF has everything you need to be successful: the school is very good, the community is solid and the facilities are excellent. … The talent pool is deep and the district pays well. … You don’t need to go outside the district to build a team. Just have to keep them home. … Only drawback of the job is the incredible demands of the parents.
Hillcrest
There is some pretty good support from the administration. They support and back you there. ... Hillcrest has a strong, diehard fan base. ... Underrated facilities that people don’t realize. … Ton of tradition and a ton of winning. … Talent pool always seems to reload there. … I like how they are positioned very well in Class 3A, and they have had two coaches over the past 30 years that have lent stability and tradition of excellence. … New facilities there are a big plus in competing with other schools. … Talent galore in that area. … The new fieldhouse helps that program. … With the conference it plays in being so weak, Hillcrest will always be a top four seed in the sectional field. … I don’t think the pressure there is quite as over-the-top as some of the other jobs in the south suburbs. But maybe it’s because they’ve just won so much.
Bloom
Large talent pool. In fact, an underrated talent pool overall. … Great tradition, though probably the most demanding fan base. … Local talent is very good. … Two buildings creates a problem in building a program and that can be a downside. … Traditional powerhouse. But the facilities aren’t great and the stability of the administration is a question. … They really love their basketball there. Bloom will take some hits by people, but I think it’s an underrated job in the south suburbs. ... Fan base is a big plus and a big negative. Can it be both?
Thornton
Maybe it’s not the job it obviously once was, but it’s still a pretty good one. … Tradition is excellent. … It’s Thornton basketball. There aren’t many better basketball names in the state. It’s a job that oozes prestige, and there aren’t many jobs with a bigger name recognition in the entire state. … The type of athlete is very intriguing in their district. … Great competition gym, but the other facilities within the school are a question mark. … Great gym.
Lincoln-Way East
I think this job and program are a sleeping giant. … It’s like H-F in ways. The combination of talent in the area, the facilities and the teacher/coach salaries are very good. … It’s been a solid program, but it could easily make the jump to elite if all the area kids stayed in the district. … So much potential at Lincoln-Way East. And they get sent to the weaker sectional every year, away from the south suburbs’ other top programs. … Good mix of players. … Sleeper of a job. You can win big there. … Pretty well-paid school district in comparison to a lot of others in south suburbs.
Marian Catholic
The fact it’s a private school option in an area where there aren’t many private school basketball opportunities in that immediate area is a big advantage. … Facilities are very good, and the school environment is excellent in building a culture. … Cost of education, along with other very competitive programs locally and in the city, make the job a challenge. … No program has made bigger strides in the past decade or two than Marian Catholic, which is a credit to Mike Taylor. The fact Marian is in this conversation says something when you consider where that job was years ago. No one would touch that job 20 years ago.
Rich
There is always talent in that area, so with that amount of kids it’s an attractive job. … The combination of three schools creates both an opportunity and a challenge. Building a culture within the school and the athletic program will be the key to building this program. … 3,000 students allows for finding players. … The potential is there to be a major player in Class 4A. … The talent pool in that area makes this job very interesting now. … The new fieldhouse takes it to a new level. … So many kids and athletes now in the school and within that district with them combining the schools. So much potential. … If it can get the program going and get the Dipper back to prominence? Then I’m not so sure if it couldn’t be the second best job in the south suburbs behind H-F.
Kankakee
The town is sports crazy and very supportive, while the administration is sports conscious and supportive. … A new fieldhouse that will rival H-F’s is being built.
