Nordonia looked from within to fill its boys basketball coaching vacancy. On Wednesday May 18th, players were informed that Mike Griffen will be the boys basketball head coach, replacing Kirk Culler after only 1 season.
Hiring a coach already at Nordonia didn’t require any compromises in experience. Coach Griffen had a successful 7 year run as Nordonia girls basketball coach. The Lady Knights went 60-38 over the last 4 seasons when Coach Griffen was head coach. The already announced assistant coaches, Dave Smith and Shaun Phillips, both have a ton of experience too. The Knights are looking to add 2 more coaches to finalize the coaching staff.
Coach Griffen led the Nordonia girls basketball team to its best record in school history last year. He was named District Coach of the Year and AP Northeast Inland Coach of the Year after leading the Lady Knights to a 21-4 record. Coaching this year’s talented seniors since they were freshmen may have made the season even more special.
When discussing his decision to accept this coaching job, Coach Griffen said “To be honest, it was one of the most difficult decisions I’ve had to make and toughest conversations I’ve had to have. I love the girls I’ve had the opportunity to coach because they gave me everything they had. We truly had a family environment and that’s something special. Something that allowed us to be successful.” His words and actions show how much he truly cares for his players. The players showed several expressions of how much they cared for him too, including how they affectionately call him by his nickname Griff.
When Coach Griffen stated that he’s taught special education at the high school for the last 7 years, it made total sense. To be good at special education, a teacher has to care, show compassion and be very positive. That’s exactly how he came across in the interview conducted on Saturday May 21st.
Though he’s going to miss leading the girls basketball program at Nordonia, Coach Griffen isn’t worried about its future. He stated “I know the girls program is in a great place. The foundation has been laid and with the talent they have and work they put in the sky is the limit.”
In an interview in February 2015, Coach Griffen mentioned that a culture shift occurred in the girls program. This was evident in the Lady Knights winning over two-thirds of their games the last 3 seasons. When asked if the boys basketball program needed a similar culture shift, Coach Griffen said “Absolutely. We have great athletes and basketball players in the program. If they can buy in to the system and start believing in themselves and each other, we will be successful. That starts with a team first mentality where we all push each other to get better every day.”
Nordonia Hills is fortunate to have a strong, long running youth basketball program called NYB. Youth basketball is a great way for high school programs to instill the attitude, fundamentals and skill sets to prepare their future players who can start playing for the Nordonia school district as early as the 7th grade. When asked about NYB, Coach Griffen stated “If you look at the best programs in the area, Mentor’s boys, Wadsworth’s girls, they all have one thing in common. There is a strong connection between the high school and youth programs. It is my job to establish that connection, whether it be through youth camps or coaching clinics. I am ready and willing to work with all levels because the earlier our kids learn what we do, the more prepared they are to do things the Knight Way when they get to the high school.”
The Nordonia boys basketball team is returning 7 letter winners, of which 3 are juniors. Ryan Smith, Mike Piotrowski and Luke Alders very likely will be asked to be the leaders on the court and in the locker room. Sophomores Drew Petros, Tye Evans and Mitch Ehrman and freshman Julius Jones are also going to be counted on to use last year’s experience to grow as basketball players and teammates.
Other players that may be counted on to contribute include junior David Johnson, sophomores Spencer Harp, Ben Lowrey, Christian Ruch and Big Ben Broscheid and freshmen Jordan Jones and Evan Wiehe. Each of these players played significant minutes on JV last year. Some even got minutes with varsity.
If you love basketball, Coach Griffen is a great follow on Twitter. His Twitter handle is @NordoniaBBall. Coach Griffen has only been tweeting since September 2015, but he’s a big proponent of social media. “Social Media is a great platform to communicate with players, parents, and the community. I plan to share all of the positive things that are happening with the program as well as sharing some of the motivational/inspirational stuff that I come across from other great coaches via Twitter.”
Nordonia Athletic Director Rob Eckinrode’s decision to hire this young but experienced coach is being seen as a positive throughout Nordonia Hills. Coach Griffen has what you look for in a high school coach; hard working, experienced, caring and intense, and all with a positive attitude. A positive attitude that was evident when he stated “positivity promotes success.” With the leadership of this proven winner, the Nordonia boys basketball team hopes to rebound from a disappointing 2015-2016 season and build a program that the Nordonia Hills community can be proud of.
