Steve Osburn. He's a math teacher and athletic director at Ben Franklin Middle School. He's coached football for 34 years. Basketball for 20+ years. He hosts summer and winter open gyms 3-4 days out of the week. He's coached AAU basketball teams in the spring for the last 15 years and led his players to summer camps at Depauw and Indiana Wesleyan. His response to the loaded schedule of coaching and leading youth sports?
"It's like anything else, it's a hobby. Some people golf, some people do this and that. It's just my hobby," said Steve Osburn in his laid-back, casual tone.
This year will actually be the first year that he will coach both boy's and girl's basketball in the same season. Apparently the seasons only overlap by 3 weeks, commented Osburn, but "it will be a new challenge, but one I'm looking forward to."
Osburn's own playing career started back at Hebron High School where, according to Osburn, if "you went out, you made the team." He admitted he wasn't that good but that he would spend a lot of time watching the game from the sidelines and taking in what his coaches and other coaches would show him.
"I've just kind of put everything together by listening, observing, and forming my own beliefs based upon a combination of things from other people," said Osburn.
His own beliefs that he's constructed over the years seem to be effective as players who have already went through his system will sometimes return to him for advice and further instruction. "I was particularly close to the senior class who just left," said Osburn. "I spent a lot of time with them."
"It's nice to go to the high school games when they're playing and having been a part of their development along the way, it's kind of nice to do that."
Although Osburn enjoys seeing past players excel to play at higher levels, there's also more in it for Osburn. He wants players to enjoy the sport and have the opportunity to play it and that's another reason why Osburn holds summer open gyms at 6:30 am for four days out of the week. No drills are ran at the open gyms. Simply old-fashioned pick-up basketball where you pick your teams and go.
"It has to be fun," said Osburn. "Otherwise, no one would come." Between 60-80 junior high students, 7th and 8th grade, Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson, show up to participate in the open gyms during the summer.
"They have plenty of opportunity. That's where the credit is. There's no magical formula to [building a great program]," said Osburn.
Although Steve might seem like just another junior high coach, his passion for the sport and time put in has made an impact in the high school program as well as the young people of our community. Thanks Steve for your continuing dedication and contribution of investing in today's youth through athletics!