Girard hoops coach not afraid to aim high

By Joe Scalzo

GIRARD — Nick Cochran may be taking over a team that went 1-20 last year, but the new Girard High boys basketball coach isn’t afraid to set big goals.

“In the long run, not the near future, I think we’re gonna be back where we were in the 1990s,” said Cochran, whose alma mater won a state title in 1993. “Girard is a different place.

“I really feel we have hard-nosed kids, tough kids, who, if you treat them well and show them you care, will bust their butt for you.”

Cochran, a longtime assistant football coach for the Indians who will remain in that capacity, took the job because he believes he can turn the program around.

“I’m in the school system and I see these kids every day,” Cochran said. “I want to get the kids more committed so they can reach their potential.

“Right now they’re not reaching that, but I’ve got 26 kids who show up every day in the gym and in the weight room. If they keep this up, good things will happen.”

Cochran replaces Mike DelBene, who went 160-152 in nine seasons, including 1-20 last year.

He’s the 12th new boys basketball coach hired this offseason. The others are Fitch (Jason Baker), Lordstown (Nathan Kish), Springfield (Eric Fender), Brookfield (Chris Fahndrich), Howland (Dan Campana), Warren JFK (Brent Villella), Jackson-Milton (Joe Bornemiss), Crestview (Herm Miller), Western Reserve (Mike Falasca), West Branch (John Hancock), Lisbon (Chris Huckshold) and Mineral Ridge (Bryan Durig).

Cochran was an assistant at Girard under Bob Krizancic in the 1990s and has recently been an assistant coach with the girls team.

“The biggest thing is, I have the right people around me coaching,” said Cochran, who quarterbacked YSU to the 1992 Division I-AA championship game.

Cochran plans to add former Springfield High standout Mark Metzka, who played collegiately at Slippery Rock and whose professional career included a stop in Demark and a stint with the short-lived Mahoning Valley Wildcats.

Rayen graduate Seth Jaffe, who played at California (Pa.) and was an assistant under Krizancic, and Nolan Cubellis, Girard’s J.V. coach, will also be on staff.

Cochran’s position will mean spending even more time in the gym, but he said he got clearance from his wife and three daughters.

“My wife loves it,” he said. “There are times when I have to leave home when there’s a game on and she’ll make sure I get the update. And my three girls come to practices with me and they love it and get along with all the kids.

“That’s what made it an easy decision.”

scalzo@vindy.com