- November 25, 2024
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Lakewood Ranch High Head Coach George Holub has been around the block.
The Long Island native, with a shock of white hair and a thick New York accent, has spent his life coaching basketball.
Holub coached at Elmont Memorial High School on Long Island for nearly 30 years, winning a New York state title in 2016, along with multiple conference championships during his tenure.
When Holub migrated south a few years ago, he didn’t predict that being a head coach would be a part of his future.
“I planned to just come down here and be an assistant coach on the end of the bench and enjoy my retirement, but somehow I keep getting drawn back into a head coaching position,” Holub said.
Holub, who has been coaching the Mustangs’ junior varsity teams for the past four years, was brought into the fold when former head coach Jake Baer left the program in mid-September. Holub hopes to bring stability to the team following the coaching turnover of the last few seasons.
After former Head Coach Jeremy Schiller left the program in 2021 for IMG Academy — Schiller led the Mustangs to a 174-98 record during his 10-year tenure, reaching a state championship final in 2019 — the once proud program has floundered.
In two seasons under Schiller’s successor, Chris Kawack, Lakewood Ranch posted a record of 17-32. Last season, the Mustangs went 8-16 under Baer.
The series of hires, Holub said, has had a tangible impact on the roster. Not only do the coaching changes negatively affect morale, but they force young players to readjust to different systems and schemes each season.
“They’ve had head coach after head coach after head coach and it’s just not right," Holub said. "They’re a fantastic group of kids that I have this year and I felt badly when Jake (Baer) left because he had the program steadily moving in the right direction. It was like, ‘ugh here we go again,’ so I wanted to provide some consistency for the boys, especially since a couple of them started with me on junior varsity four years ago.”
For the Mustangs, it would appear the 2024-25 season will be a rebuilding year, one where the building of culture might take precedence over the win-loss record. Lakewood Ranch lacks height with their tallest players standing 6-foot-4. In terms of marquee talent, the Mustangs’ top scorer last year, Isaiah Allen, transferred after the season.
For Holub, however, it’s a roster that allows him to instill his brand of basketball: a tough, team-oriented style of play that prioritizes defense and shot selection over individual statistics.
It’s a style of play that was evident in the Mustangs' season-opener on Nov. 19, when they defeated Bayshore High 59-54.
Lakewood Ranch swarmed Bayshore with a man-to-man defense, picking up the Bruins senior point guard Keshawn Parm in Bayshore’s backcourt nearly every possession. The team’s diligence was well-rewarded — while Parm had 23 points, he also turned the ball over 13 times.
Bayshore’s other leading scorer, junior Jayce Brave, had eight turnovers.
“As a team, a lot of our focus is going to be on defense," Holub said. "That was my focus in New York and we did pretty well with that. We’ve been focusing a lot on defense and sharing the ball. In the previous few years, the game was dominated by one or two players, so we’re looking for a more team-oriented approach.”
Offensively, Holub is looking for the Mustangs to move the ball more than they did last season. Instead of being reliant on one or two primary scorers, the Mustangs will look to all players for offensive output like they did against Bayshore, when 6-foot--1 freshman guard Greg Dauer scored 14 points and 6-foot senior James Butler tallied 13.
Holub said that he wants the team to move the ball more than they did last season, searching for the shot that’s best. He believes that buy-in from his players, a selflessness that puts winning above individual statistics, is what it will take for Lakewood Ranch to not only remain competitive, but to build a positive culture.
Holub said the values he instills in his team this year will continue to permeate throughout the program for years to come.
For Holub, some things have changed since his days at Elmont Memorial High. His demeanor on the sideline during the game against Bayshore is calm, muted. He doesn’t say anything during game play, saving his directions for timeouts and stoppages.
“Before, I was like a raving lunatic on the sideline," he said. "I thought that motivated the team, but to be honest, when they’re out there playing, they don’t hear a thing you say. Now, everything that I want to get across to the players happens in practice and by the time the game comes, it’s more or less a test that I guide the players through."
His passion for the game and educating young players, however, has not wavered over a lifetime of coaching. It’s what keeps bringing him back to the gym, day after day, year after year. Lakewood Ranch, at least in 2024, is not seen to be a prestigious basketball program. But for Holub, that’s not the point.
“I love working with kids," he said. "I love taking them from one spot and elevating their game. Every single kid that comes into my gym wants to get better and my job is to make them better, whether it be by a little bit or a lot by the end of the season.”
