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McKeown elevated to boys coach at Boardman
By JOhn bassetti
Boardman
If being a former player of Frank Beck is any measure for those who have gone on to coach basketball at Boardman High, Dan McKeown is destined for success.
Ron Moschella, for example, is a former Beck player who has posted over 500 wins as Boardman’s girls coach.
Moschella last played for Beck at Ursuline in 1967-68. McKeown last played for Beck in 1980-81.
Now that McKeown has taken the reins of Boardman’s boys basketball program, the Beck effect may follow.
McKeown, who served as Boardman’s freshman coach for the last three years, is expected to be approved by the Board of Education on June 28.
McKeown assumes the position held by Jim Goske, who followed Jared Cardillo, who followed Dan Gorski, who followed longtime coach Al Burns.
He’ll work to improve on last season’s 7-14 record.
“Last year was last year,” McKeown, 47, said. “We’re going to move forward from that point. It’s early to speculate, but we’ve got a lot of work to do in the gym.”
Being elevated from the freshman level seemed like a logical progression.
“I knew there was an opportunity and I felt I could move in and make a difference,” McKeown said of his familiarity with upperclassmen-to-be, as well as the sophomores and freshmen.
“We’ve got a good group of incoming sophomores and a freshman class that had great success at Center and Glenwood,” McKeown said of the district’s two feeder schools. “We’re moving in the right direction.”
One of his priorities is to develop the talent at lower levels and create consistency between the Glenwood and Center programs and the varsity program.
With his varsity, McKeown’s objective is clear: “We need to bond as a team to develop trust and togetherness that leads to success on the basketball court.”
McKeown not only played for Beck, but he served as an assistant in the 1980s.
“Frank had a huge influence on me, especially what he demanded out of us as both students and athletes. I’ll bring a lot of what he taught me to the table as head coach.”
After taking time off from coaching to raise kids, McKeown served as varsity assistant for three years for current Ursuline boys coach Keith Gunther.
“I’ve been around the block a few times,” McKeown said of his experience prior to his first varsity head coaching position.
McKeown may not be on a mission, but he does have a mission statement: “We need to learn to play hard and play together all the time on both ends of the floor every possession of every game. That’s one of Keith’s big things. You’ve got to play hard and play together.”