HOWARD — July is turning out to be a life-altering month for Will O’Hara. As he enters his 11th year as a coach, the Mount Vernon alum will do so as the head coach of the East Knox boys basketball team.
The move from assistant varsity basketball coach and head junior varsity coach at Reynoldsburg to the helm of East Knox will bring another move, one that is tied to a more life-changing event.
“ I live here in Columbus right now, but I’m getting married, and then we’re going to start looking for a place back in the Knox County area very soon,” O’Hara explained.
Those nuptials took place on Saturday, July 18.
All in the family
O’Hara said that his new wife, Callie O’Hara, has already secured employment.
“She was just hired as the athletic trainer for Mount Vernon, so we both have new jobs in the area,” he said. “It is actually through Knox Community Hospital, and she is contracted out to Mount Vernon.
“I’ve watched her work, and she is really good at it. Developing relationships with the athletes, there is a lot of trust that needs to happen for them to come to her with injuries.”
Coaching history
Besides his three years at Reynoldsburg, O’Hara has patrolled the sidelines for his alma mater, Mount Vernon, and in Centerburg.
Even though the new assignment is not Mount Vernon or Centerburg, it is still familiar territory.
“In a very real way, yeah, it is a homecoming,” O’Hara said.
Many coaches love acronyms, and the new East Knox Mentor is no different.
“We are going to have four tenets that we are going to believe in. We call them TRUE. True, Relentless, Unselfish and Enthusiastic,” he said.
Bulldog Director of Athletics Bailey Sprague outlined what the hiring committee was looking for in a new coach.
“For me, I want someone who is going to be able to, in this case, grow our young men into positive role models in our community,” Sprague said. “Someone can be the best coach in the world, but if he’s not going to develop these guys into better people, then, you know, we are just wasting our time.”
It looks as though O’Hara took a page out of his new boss’ playbook.
“Toughness applies to everyday life, mental and physical toughness. Players who will bounce back from adversity, showing up every day. We are going to serve others on the court and off,” O’Hara said.
“This is basketball. This is a sport that we love, and we get to do it every day. Why shouldn’t we be excited?”
Even though O’Hara has not officially met his new team, the University of Akron graduate has had time to look over the roster.
“Peyton Hull will probably be our returning leading scorer; he will be a junior this year. I think he averaged about 12 points a game. Rush Beatty will be back, and he is playing football. Mason Payne may play a full summer schedule, and we will be seeing some real improvement,” the coach said.
O’Hara made sure to thank some of those who aided him in his path to being a head coach.
“I want to make sure and let everyone know how much I appreciate Andy Moore and Nick Coon, and I want to thank those two guys for helping me along in my journey,” O’Hara said.
The Bulldogs will open their 2026-27 season on the road in a conference tilt against Northmor on Dec. 18.
O’Hara will have his home debut on Dec. 22 when the Bulldogs host the Centerburg Trojans.