ST. ELMO — Ryan Beccue and Greg Feezel make a quality tandem.
Both have been involved with St. Elmo and Brownstown athletics for over 20 years. Feezel just finished his 21st season as head coach of the Eagles boys basketball team. Beccue has been his top assistant coach for all of those years, while also leading the athletics department at St. Elmo and coaching the baseball team at Brownstown.
They have a strong friendship that has lasted for two decades and can thank basketball for it.
“It started as a ‘basketball friendship,’ but a (true) friendship came out of it,” Beccue said. “We spend every single day together in the gym and started to get to know each other.”
Prior to joining the high school team, Beccue was the junior high school boys basketball head coach.
Kevin Jackson, who was the varsity head coach at St. Elmo before Feezel, accepted the same position at Vandalia, leaving the spot vacant.
Feezel applied and ultimately got the position.
The only kicker that he wanted was to have Beccue along with him.
“I wasn’t going to do it if he didn’t, because there’s too much that goes on,” Feezel said. “He does a lot for the program.”
At first, Beccue wasn’t all that interested.
He just wasn’t ready to give up the gig he had.
“I didn’t want to leave the junior high level at that time. We made the state tournament a couple of times and things were rolling,” Beccue said. “It was a lot of fun and I was happy where I was.”
Feezel eventually convinced Beccue to join him on the bench, and the two haven’t moved since.
Nick Reeder is also on the bench with them. He has been an assistant coach for the past three seasons.
“He does a great job of listening to opinions,” said Beccue of Feezel. “He and I have the same thoughts; there are times when we say the same thing at the same time and then just laugh, but if I see something that I feel like we should do or don’t do, then I’ll speak up.”
While serving as an assistant coach, Beccue has, at times, grown frustrated with his other obligations.
How does he manage it all?
Beccue said he has had to learn how to multitask.
“I had to learn how to multitask a long time ago. I’ve been in it for so long, though, so it’s not hard for me to do it anymore,” Beccue said. “I would say one of the biggest challenges is on a basketball game day, when we’re in the pregame warmups for a junior varsity game and, all of a sudden, people start needing things or asking me for things that have nothing to do with me coaching.
“I’ve got to try to do two things at one time and that’s a little bit of a challenge and sometimes frustrating, but you just have to take care of it.”
Beccue is an Altamont native.
He has been around basketball his whole life. The sport is part of the reason he wanted to coach in the first place.
“I started at Altamont Lutheran in fifth grade. We had a six-man team there,” Beccue said. “Then, I went to Altamont Grade School for sixth, seventh and eighth grade. (Playing basketball) was something I always loved to do and playing basketball in the National Trail Conference was part of the reason why I got into the profession — I wanted to stay around (basketball) and in this conference.”
Beccue isn’t showing any signs of slowing down, either.
The first day of basketball practice is like Christmas morning; it’s simply something he doesn’t want to give up.
“One of the things I love the most about (coaching) is when the kids are all excited to start the year,” Beccue said. “It’s a fresh start for everybody.”