Jake's Take | Legendary Willard basketball coach Bob Haas will be deeply missed
WILLARD — The most dynamic basketball coaching duo has reunited.
Early Thursday morning, news spread of the passing of legendary high school basketball coach Bob Haas, who piloted Willard High School into hoops prominence. He was 82.
As soon as I heard of Bob's passing, my mind went straight to one of our many, many interactions over the years. My dad and I were having breakfast at Uncle Dudley's in Willard and like pretty much every other time we went there, Bob came strolling in sporting his infamous Woody Hayes-style Ohio State hat. He sat down at a big table and was the first of several of his old buddies to arrive. Like the old coach always did, he checked over the menu as if he didn't already have it memorized by heart or already knew what he was going to order.
As my dad and I finished up our breakfast, I stopped over at Bob's table for a little chat, like I always did every time I saw him. But this particular interaction was bittersweet. It was about a month after his beautiful wife, Sandra Sue, passed away and you could see a difference in Bob's eyes.
"Hey, Bob! How ya doin'?" I would always ask every time I saw him.
"Hey Jake," Bob would say and I was always incredibly humbled that he even knew my name. "Oh, I'm alright. Just hanging in there. You heard I lost my assistant coach, right?"
Of course, Bob was talking about Sandy, who had just as much to do with the 522 career wins Bob piled up as a high school basketball coach.
"Yeah, man, I am so sorry to hear that," I said. "I am sure she is smiling down on you right now."
"Yeah, I miss her a lot," Bob said as his eyes welled up.
We talked a bit longer about high school basketball season. There were a lot of "huhs?" and me repeating myself in a louder voice because the old ball coach didn't hear as well as he once did, but I didn't mind. I was just happy to be talking to him. He told me to keep up the great work and that he enjoyed reading my articles. I thanked him numerous times, shook his hand and said goodbye.
After every single one of our interactions, I found it hard to fathom that Bob Haas actually knew who I was. But I always felt so good after talking with him.
As I walked off the golf course on Thursday afternoon, I learned of Bob's passing and I couldn't help but to feel an overwhelming feeling of sadness, and yet, happiness at the same time. I was sad that I would no longer get to see Bob when my dad and I went out for our breakfasts. I was sad I will no longer get to run over and shake his hand whenever I covered games at Willard's gym, one that bears his name. I was sad that a local coaching icon was gone.
But I was happy that Coach Haas is now reunited with his assistant coach. Basketball in heaven doesn't know what is coming it's way with Bob eager and ready to coach a team and Sandy right there waiting to support her husband as she did all those years.
To say Bob Haas was a legend is an understatement. He owned a career coaching record of 522-144 and won 441 of those games at Willard while only losing 74 games in 22 years. He piloted the Flashes to five undefeated regular seasons (1972-73, 79-80, 80-81, 81-82 and 90-91) while winning seven undefeated Northern Ohio League championships, six NOL titles and three co-league championships. He won 17 sectional titles, 11 district championships, and three regional crowns with four runner-up finishes at the regional level. He was the conductor for 69 consecutive regular-season wins from Feb. 23, 1979, through Dec. 28, 1982. The five teams that were part of that stretch were inducted into the Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012. The 69 wins are still second in Ohio High School basketball history behind only Middletown's 76 from 1955-1958.
Haas earned eight District 6 AA Coach of the Year awards, three Division II District 6 Coach of the Year honors, two Ohio High School Basketball Coaches Association Coach of the Year accolades, one OHSBCA co-Coach of the Year honors, four UPI AA Coach of the Year awards and two Associated Press Coach of the Year crowns.
In 1991, Haas was an inductee of the inaugural Willard High School Sports Hall of Fame class and was inducted into the OHSBCA Hall of Fame in 1996. In 2010, Willard High School bestowed the greatest honor for any coach by naming the gym the Robert L. Haas Gymnasium inscribing his name on the court. He is still Willard's all-time winningest coach in boys' basketball history.
He is also a 2015 Crawford County Sports Hall of Fame inductee.With every single thing Bob accomplished during his coaching career, he would be the first to tell you he couldn't have done any of it without Sandy. Whenever we spoke, he always had a great suggestion on how to improve high school sports coverage in the paper, we always talked basketball and we always, always, always talked about our wives.
He adored my wife, Sam, a 2008 Willard grad, and always said how amazing she must be to allow me to do the job I do where nights and weekends are usually dedicated to working instead of date nights.
"Boy, she sure is pretty," he would always say with a wink.
He knew how special of a woman it took to be the wife of a sports reporter and a coach because Sandy was his rock and that special woman that allowed him to have a coaching career that spanned more than three decades.
And now, the dynamic coaching duo has a glorious eternity to spend together in heaven. Bob will likely be watching a lot of film on his next opponent and Sandy will be right here pouring him a cup of coffee and watching right along.
The basketball world will never be the same without Bob Haas and the local scene sure has lost a legend. But I am sure if Bob could speak to us now, he would stand there clinching Sandy's hand and telling us all how happy he is to have his assistant coach back as he tips his Woody Hayes-style hat, gives a wink and waves goodbye.
Jake Furr is the Sports Reporter for the Mansfield News Journal. He can be reached via text at 740-244-9934 or via email at jfurr@gannett.com. You can follow him on Twitter @JakeFurr11 for all of the latest high school sports news in Richland County.
This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Legendary Willard boys basketball coach Bob Haas dies at 82
