The foundations of successful high school athletic programs are often developed at the local community’s elementary and junior high schools that feed into them. The better the feeder program, the more likely the high school program will do well.
As he strives to lead the Oak Park and River Forest High School boys basketball program back to prominence, varsity head coach Phil Gary is hopeful that the creation of a new feeder program will be an asset.
“It’s something we’ve been trying to get since taking over,” said Gary, entering his fifth season. “A lot of other schools have feeder programs that help the high schools win consistently. It’s surprising that, being a big school, we didn’t have one up until this point, but better late than never.”
Starting this fall, the Junior Huskies program will be the official OPRF feeder partner. It will consist of players from third through eighth grades. All participants need to be residents of either Oak Park or River Forest to be eligible. Tryouts will be held in late October, and the season runs from November through February 2025.
Practices will take place twice per week at OPRF, local middle schools, local park district, and other community locations. Teams will play 20-25 games, including home and away contests with other suburban feeder programs. Additionally, there will be two feeder tournaments each year.
“I’ve been getting a lot of positive feedback from the community, thanking me for starting this,” Gary said. “They’ve been saying that, whatever we need, to reach out to them.”
The Junior Huskies will not only be for boys; girls are also invited. Program coordinators will be former OPRF players as well as community members who, in Gary’s words, “love teaching the game.”
“I went to OPRF, and I want both the boys and girls to be truly successful,” he said. “We’re pretty much together and support each other; that’s what high school basketball is all about.”
While the official website will be online soon, Gary said people who want more information about the Junior Huskies can email jrhuskiesfeeder@gmail.com or PGary@oprfhs.org.
As he develops the feeder program, Gary is also busy coaching the OPRF boys in summer competitions. He likes what he’s seen so far.
“They’ve been doing a good job, and [rising seniors] Alex Gossett and Alex Vincent have stepped up as leaders,” Gary said.
OPRF went 2-2 at the Romeoville Live Event. On June 21, the Huskies defeated Courtmasters 68-45, but lost to Mount Vernon 68-45.
The following day, Vincent turned in a dominant performance against Grayslake North with 25 points and 10 rebounds in OPRF’s 57-40 victory. Gossett added 17 points.
Then in the Huskies’ final game, Vincent poured in 16 points and Gossett 14, but it wasn’t enough in a 61-47 loss to Andrew.
“I thought Gossett, Vincent, and Jerome [Delaney] were really good this weekend,” Gary said. “Our senior point guard, Andrew Zhou, was also really good, making 11 threes in our four games. And Andre Stanton, our 6-10 kid, is developing well, as is Logan Johnson [rising junior and brother of recently graduated Max Johnson].”
OPRF concludes the summer at the Ridgewood High School Shootout, June 28-30.