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50 | December 13, 2018 | The Northbrook tower Sports northbrooktower.com Pieper’s legacy ‘one that will last forever’ Martin Carlino, Editor Much of the success of longtime Glenbrook North head football coach Bob Pieper, the winningest coach in the program’s history, is rooted in his belief in family. Pieper’s family-first focus and his desire to watch his son’s high school football career, are also at the heart of his decision to step down as GBN’s head coach. A Dec. 4 press release from GBN’s athletic department states Pieper is resigning so he can “watch his son play high school football in the future.” Pieper’s son is currently a member of the football program at Vernon Hills NORTH SHORE High School. Pieper coached at GBN for 21 years, 19 of those as the team’s head coach. He served as North’s head coach from 1997-2000 and then from 2004-2018. In his tenure with the Spartans, Pieper racked up 120 wins, 10 conference championships and 13 trips to the IHSA playoffs. The IHSFCA Hall of Fame enshrined Pieper in 2018. The hall of famer leaves the position with a laundry list of accomplishments. And his journey into Spartans lore started in 1997. A phone call from Jim Bloch Prior to his tenure at GBN, Pieper coached for Crete-Monee High School A 22ND CENTURY MEDIA PRODUCTION in Crete, Ill., from 1992 to 1996. In early 1997, a call from Jim Bloch, then GBN athletic director, sparked Pieper’s interest in coming to Northbrook. “I was the head football coach at Crete-Monee … my wife and I had been married for 10 months, we had just bought a new home and one night when we got home, there was a message on our answering machine from Jim Bloch,” Pieper said. “ He ask me if I’d be interested in coming to speak with him.” Enticed by Bloch’s offer, Pieper met with him and it wasn’t long before mutual interests came to light. “When I came up and EXCLUSIVE ANALYSIS AND INTERVIEWS about your favorite high school teams. Sports editors Michal Dwojak and Michael Wojtychiw host the only North Shore sports podcast. FIND THE VARSITY: NORTH SHORE ON SOUNDCLOUD, ITUNES OR NORTHBROOKTOWER.COM/SPORTS looked at the community and looked at the facilities and met with Mr. Bloch, I was very impressed with him and thought he had a plan going forward that would support football,” Pieper said. Pieper quickly noticed the school’s record of success in other sports and envisioned a strong possibility to transfer that over to the football field. “To me that means that there was athletes in the school, and we just had to get them out for football,” he said. Changing the program’s culture Success and GBN football were not synonymous in the 1990s — but then Pieper, and a new coaching staff, arrived with the hope and skill necessary to change that. In 1999, just his third season as the team’s head coach, Pieper led the Spartans to their first playoff appearance in nearly two decades, but success did not come right away. “The first year, even though we went 0-9 … there was a lot of progress that first year,” Pieper said. “I think we lost six games by seven points or less.” To instill a winning attitude in the program, Pieper and his coaching staff knew a change in the program’s culture was necessary. “It took a lot of people to change the culture,” he said. “A lot of great people, a lot of great kids, a lot of great coaches. The faculty and especially the parents, they’ve been so supportive over the years. ... So it kind of took a village to change Longtime Glenbrook North head football coach Bob Pieper, the winningest coach in the program’s history, is resigning from his position. Pieper won a school-record 120 games as coach of the Spartans. Photo Submitted our culture.” One of the members of the coaching staff Pieper brought in was Matt Purdy. Purdy played for the University of Iowa and spent time with the Philadelphia Eagles in 1996. At the heart of the staff’s philosophy was instilling hope among the program’s players. “It was a lot about trying to get the kids to believe in the program and in the system,” Purdy said. “And trying to get the best effort put on the field. And I think that was a big part of the evolution of the program.” A tactical mind on the sideline Many factors outside the sideline helped shaped the program’s, and Pieper’s, success. But on the field, Pieper’s in-game and weekly coaching set the Spartans up for prosperity. “[Tactically] he simply might be one of the best,” Purdy said. “I think that one of the best things that he is known for is his ability to see something on the field at the time and quickly adapt the offense or defense to it. He might be the best guy I’ve ever been around in drawing it up in the sand on the fly.” Outside of in-game coaching, Pieper helped prepare players with the mindset he believed they needed to have. “I think that one of his best qualities was being able to help us leave the negative behind and really focused on moving us forward as a team,” Chris Heywood, a 2017 all-conference Spartans football player said. Ben Kieffer, a 2018 allconference Spartan, shared similar sentiments. “Coach Pieper always did a great job of leading the team,” he said. “He did a great job making us feel like a team.” Kieffer continued to say Pieper “created a winning culture that wasn’t there before” and encouraged his players to “never settle.” A family-first approach As a leader of young men, Pieper hoped to pass down life lessons to his players that far transcended the game of football. One of the most important messages he believed in was a family-first ap- Please see Pieper, 49
northbrooktower.com Sports the northbrook tower | December 13, 2018 | 51 Photo submitted 1st-and-3 Athletes of the week 1. Frank Siegien (ABOVE) The Glenbrook North boys basketball player led the way for the Spartans in a loss to rival Glenbrook North, scoring 15 points. 2. Jon Scheyer North’s boys basketball legend adds on to his career accomplishments when it was announced that he’ll be inducted into the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2019. 3. Bob Pieper The GBN football head coach announced his resignation after being the winningest coach. Boys Basketball North can’t keep up with South Gary Larsen Freelance Reporter After Glenbrook South junior Dom Martinelli scored 26 points against his team, veteran Glenbrook North coach David Weber did not mince words. “Martinelli is the best high school player I’ve seen in years,” Weber said. “He’s unbelievable. It doesn’t look real fancy, but he’s going to get 30 (points) on you like it’s nothing.” Martinelli’s ability to move without the ball and get open was on full display in Glenbrook South’s 62-44 win at GBN on Saturday, Dec. 8. GBS senior Will King can distribute as well as any point guard around, and he appreciates the work Martinelli does to provide an easy target. “The kid’s amazing,” King said. “I love playing with him. He hustles and scraps a lot for his points, he knows how and when to get open, and we can all find him.” Martinelli, a 6-foot-4 forward, said that in his second varsity season, he simply has a better understanding of South coach Phil Ralston’s offense. “I just move to open spots and try to get as many looks as I can,” Martinelli said. “My teammates give Glenbrook North boys basketball player Alex Press shoots the ball against Glenbrook South on Saturday, Dec. 8, in Northbrook. GARY LARSEN/22ND CENTURY MEDIA Online content For the photo gallery from this game, visit NorthbrookTower.com. me great passes and I just keep working hard for the ball. The key is just hard work, having an IQ for the game, and understanding where the open spots are.” The Central Suburban League crossover game in Northbrook was nip and tuck at the outset as the game’s first quarter saw eight lead changes. GBN took a 12-11 lead on a baseline jump shot from Brian Johnson, but that was the last time the Spartans would hold the lead all night. A 3-pointer from Tyler Nelson gave GBS a 14- 12 lead and the Titans led 17-12 by quarter’s end. King led South with seven points and guard David Mirochnick led North with five. The second quarter saw GBS (8-0) take control over GBN (5-3). The Titans used a 19-8 scoring edge in the quarter to build a 36-20 halftime lead as Martinelli scored 10 of his 26 points to lead the way. Ralston was pleased with his side’s secondquarter play. “We ran our (offensive) sets perfectly and were able to get some transition baskets, and I thought our defense was just outstanding,” Ralston said. “So far this season they’ve done a nice job of playing the game the way we want it played.” Turnovers hurt GBN in the pivotal second quarter. “We knew it was going to be a battle and we needed to hang close in that first half,” Weber said. “We had Please see b basketball, 48 Boys basketball Scheyer to be inducted into hall of fame Michal Dwojak, Sports Editor Jon Scheyer gave Glenbrook North fans one of their favorite athletic moments in 2005 when the boys basketball won the school’s only state championship. Now Scheyer will enter into an elite class of Illinois basketball history when he will be inducted into the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame as part of its latest class. The 2006 Illinois Mr. Basketball will join numerous different players, coaches and broadcasters in the latest class that will be inducted in 2019. The nod likely doesn’t come as a shock to many fans and didn’t to his high school head coach and current GBN boys basketball coach David Weber. “I think it’s a great honor,” Weber said. “Obviously this was going to happen sometime because he is, to me, one of the best players that’s ever played in this state. If you look at all the records just through history of Illinois, I know he’s in a lot of those categories. It’s just an outstanding career, well-deserved.” Scheyer came onto the scene quickly and captured the eyes of many high school basketball fans during his time at GBN. His teams advanced to three Elite Eights, including the 2005 state-championship run. He is the fourth-leading scorer in Illinois history with 3,034 points and is the only player in state history to finish his career ranked in the all-time top 10 in points, rebounds, assists and steals. Scheyer was an McDonald's All-American in 2006 before he graduated and continued his basketball career at Duke University. He is now the associate head coach for the Duke men’s basketball team. Weber saw firsthand the impact Scheyer had on the basketball community in Illinois. As an inductee into the hall of fame last year, he knows Scheyer will go back and remember all the great memories he had in high school. His former head coach remembers how he was one of the best in Illinois history. “Sometimes he was so good and people tried to be like him but people weren’t as good as him,” Weber said. “I think he’s very unique and wasn’t a kid who made spectacular dunks, making those acrobatic palys, he was just such a smart basketball player. Through the years, kids saw how you should play the game because he played it the right way. He’s been a great role model for anybody that during those years was able to watch him.” Listen Up “... he is, to me, one of the best players that’s every played in this state.” David Weber — The GBN boys basketball head coach on Jon Scheyer being inducted into the hall of fame. tunE in What to watch this week The Glenbrook North boys hockey team hosts New Trier Green on Saturday, Dec. 15. • 4:30 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 15, at Northbrook Sports Complex Index 48 - Boys Swimming and Diving 46 - Boys Hockey Fastbreak is compiled by The Tower’s staff. Send comments to m.dwojak@22ndcenturymedia.com.
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