Coach Jack Greynolds
August 24, 2004
Coach Jack Greynolds
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Don Murphy, Presenter
Two years ago when Mrs. Gillette and I had the honor of recognizing Mr. Eugene Pamer as a Distinguished Educator, I spoke of what made Mr. Pamer such a great teacher. He knew how to challenge his students. Many believe that students need and want to be challenged for, “An unchallenged mind is destined to wander aimlessly through life.”
I can tell you that former Revere basketball coach Jack Greynolds does not have any of his former players wandering aimlessly through life. He knew how to challenge his players. He knew how to challenge their physical being, their mental being, their emotions, and he knew how to challenge their soul. If you played for Coach Greynolds, you were proud, you were dedicated and you paid the price, but the rewards were great and everlasting.
The pride and dedication that he instilled in his players paid off. During his tenure at Revere from 1958 to 1970, his teams posted a 193 and 54 mark. During his first year of coaching, Revere was not in the Suburban League, but out of the next eleven years, Revere was the champion or co-champ eight times. During his years at Revere and Barberton, he compiled 549 wins vs. 121 loses for an 82% winning record. He was Summit County Coach of the Year five times. He coached two Division I state runnerups and one state champion while at Barberton. He has been inducted into the Summit County Sports Hall of Fame, the Barberton Sports Hall of Fame and the Ohio State Athletic Association Sports Hall of Fame. Besides being a great coach he was a helluva a player. When I played here, he was in his prime and believe me none of us could stop him, including our All-District players.
The Halls of Fame and championship trophies are great, but the true tribute to Coach Greynolds is what his players say about him:
Gary Major 1965, “I still use what he taught me everyday in my job as a workforce motivator.”
Jeff Springer 1964, “He was the most inspirational educator I ever had.”
Mike Jones 1968, “As a teacher myself, I have found much of the current theory and practices of teaching that I employ are enhanced by the lessons I learned from Coach Greynolds.”
Chuck Tate 1965, “He taught us that practice and the pursuit of a dream go hand in hand.
Don Raynor 1963 “Coach Greynolds had that rare ability to teach us the meaning of dedication, loyalty, work ethic and the real concept of “Team”
Biff Lloyd 1961, “Next to my father, he was the most influential person in my life.” I am sure many other players, including myself, would echo Biff’s thoughts.
The most eloquent tribute came from 1967 Revere graduate and author, Dr. Ralph Pim. His book Winning Basketball is dedicated to Coach Jack Greynolds. In the second paragraph of the dedication, Ralph writes:
“But Jack was more than an innovator and a tactician. He was a leader that pushed his players to give their best at all times. He instilled a sense of pride in his players that still exist today. The skills he taught us on the court- teamwork, discipline, dedication, and perseverance-are the same tools that have helped all of us throughout our lives.”
“Coach Greynolds, thank you. You have given us memories and lessons that we will carry forever”
In a personal note from Ralph:
Jack,
The lessons I learned from you have impacted my life and there are no words that can express my appreciation. This book is for you!
Ralph Pim
As you can see, Jack is a man revered by his players. The 549 wins was indeed an accomplishment, but of greater significance were the hundreds of “winners” he produced. These winners were the young men that Jack Greynolds challenged. They have never wandered aimlessly for they became winners in a bigger game, the game of life.
Coach is not able to be here today to accept this distinguished award. Just this past March a terrible case of peritonitis left him near death. The style he taught, he also lived, he never gave up, but he still is not strong enough to leave the nursing facility. We have a deal though. Two months ago, I told him if he gets out of there, I will take him to all of his son’s games that I can. I hope I get the chance to pay off.
Fortunately, we do have the “chip off the old block” here today. An outstanding player and coach in his own right, he was a long-time nemesis of Revere when he coached at Tallmadge High School where he had many league-leading teams. He is now the head basketball coach at GlenOak High School in Stark County and competes in a Division I league that may just be the toughest in Ohio. To accept a Revere Alumni Association Distinguished Educators’ Award on behalf of his father, please welcome Jack Greynolds, Jr.
