Kerkman's 700 wins leave quite an impression
Books could be written about West Aurora boys basketball, and about the Blackhawks' coach the past 34 years, Gordon “Gordie” Kerkman.
It would be a very thin volume if the author depended on Kerkman to detail his own accomplishments. The man will not blow his own horn, not even after his 700th career victory last Friday against Naperville North.
“I think other people have gotten a little bit more excited about it than I have,” Kerkman said this week. “I think if you coach that long you probably should have 700 wins. Some people may think I should have 800.”
Some people are more inclined to compliment Kerkman, a past president of the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association and a 1990 inductee into the IBCA Hall of Fame. Following are just a few of them.
John McDougal, West Aurora 1965-76: “When he was an assistant to me he was very impressive in everything he did. He was most loyal to me and to the program. He had a great work ethic, a good knowledge of the concepts of the game and he taught fundamentals. When you put all those ingredients together and stay with it for some time you are destined for success...
“He distinguished himself as a good assistant. I certainly recommended him for (head coach) because I thought he would be very successful. He certainly has fulfilled my expectations, to say the least.”
Jim Roberts, Batavia: “Obviously his record speaks for itself. His coaching has spanned the test of time and the changes within the game. And through it all he's remained a very helpful and humble human being.”
Jerry Krieg, St. Charles East 1998-2003: “We were real gracious and we gave him a few of those wins...
“You just knew when you played West Aurora that they were going to be prepared. You had to be prepared to go to your Plan B because they were going to take some of your strengths away. It was an honor to go up against them.”
Barry Brennan, Wheaton Central/Wheaton Warrenville South 1986-2001: “Gordie's a great spokesman and ambassador for basketball. He's just been a torch bearer for so many of us for so many years. Not only has he been an ambassador for basketball in the area, he's been an ambassador for basketball in the state of Illinois...
“When he came into the DuPage Valley Conference he really forced the rest of us to elevate our game, because we were losing a smaller school, Glenbard South, and picking up West Aurora...
“His kids are just always so well coached, so well disciplined, and I'm just so proud of him that he's been able to maintain that.”
Mark Lindo, Naperville North 1992-2009, Aurora Central 1982-92 (and an East Aurora graduate): “He is a man of class, he is a man of integrity, he is humble and his teams are among the most prepared of anyone I've ever seen. He is definitely a legend of the game in the state of Illinois and more importantly, he's a legend as a person.”
Scott Martens, East Aurora 1985-97, current assistant: “He probably was the toughest coach to prepare against out of anybody I coached against. His experience, his preparation, he always had his kids ready to play and it got harder after he retired from teaching. He could spend his day plotting...
“I don't know where he gets the energy, really. He's still going strong.”
Dan Batka, Lake Park 1997-2007, West Aurora assistant: “The blessing about all of it is Gordie shares his wealth and knowledge not only with the coaches that coach with him as assistants, but also with some of the guys who've played for him. Guys like Kenny Battle... who is passing it on to the AAU teams and the kids that he coaches...
“It's a great legacy and a milestone for Gordie, but he's very reserved and very complimentary of the people who have also touched his life. When it comes to the wins he's accrued throughout his coaching career, sometimes I think he's a little uncomfortable with his notoriety.”
Ron Johnson, St. Charles 1963-98: “He certainly gets a lot of respect from the coaches in the area, and his players all had a lot of respect for him. And they knew that if they were going to have success they'd do it the way he wanted it done. Many of them were of the same mold, they all knew defense was the number one priority, and the offense took care of itself for many of those years...
“He's certainly a gentleman and well respected in the ranks of the coaches. Everybody speaks highly of Gordie.”
Net proceeds
Naperville North athletic director Doug Smith brought the Hoops for Healing boys Thanksgiving basketball tournament to Naperville after cofounding it in his prior position as Woodstock's athletic director. Smith said this year's tourney raised the most money it had in its six years.
A cancer survivor who is retiring at the end of this school year, Smith said Hoops for Healing raised $20,000 for the Edward Hospital Foundation's Camp Hope. The six-year total came to more than $110,000.
Smith praised each of the programs that contributed this year Geneva, Marmion, Aurora Christian, Waubonsie Valley, DeKalb, Oswego, Oswego East and Smith's own Huskies.