The Fair Play boys have a new head coach with Deric Link taking over for hall of fame coach Lynn Long. This is Link’s first head coaching job after assisting at Marshfield last year.
“The culture and history of Fair Play basketball (attracted me to the job),” Link said. “It is a great community with huge support for its athletics. Following Coach Long will not be easy but it has put me in a great position because of the impact he had on this program.”
Fair Play graduated a strong group of seniors from last year’s 17-win team that will be tough to replace.
“Any time you lose the amount of seniors that we have there is a learning curve. I expect us to compete and surprise some people,” Link said. “We have kids who love to be in the gym and have a passion for not only the game but for the team. It has been a great process throughout the summer and into this fall. We have a chance to do something really cool this year and have an exciting season but we have to buy into the process of everything every day and compete.”
Even with the graduation of talent, Link has a strong group of senior guards to lean on in his first year in Noah Rutledge, Logan Underwood, Scott Schwartz and Cody Schuler. Rutledge earned all-conference honors as a junior last season.
CLICK HERE FOR ALL THE WINTER SPORTS PREVIEWS
“Noah was terrific last year as a junior,” Link said. “The expectation is high but he is a guy that is ready for it. He is a hardworking, skilled, and athletic guy who can not only put the ball in the basket and put pressure on the defense by his ability to create. He has the opportunity to grow in his game and allow his length to impact the game defensively. Noah is a gym rat, and that has rubbed off on to his teammates.”
Shuler is the team’s top defender and led the team in steals last season. Underwood is a strong an athletic guard that stretches the floor well. He was one of the best players off the bench last year.
Senior Scott Schwartz, junior Colby Durst and sophomores Adrian Hartshorne, Kolin Thomas and Adam Bass will be some new players to watch on varsity this year.
“I think our team’s biggest strength is our quickness. We are not big but we have smart guys who are quick and get after it. This is a competitive group,” Link said. “I have high expectations for this group. There is a lot of potential. We have a chance to accomplish something really special. We have to bring a championship level energy, effort, and pursuit of excellence every day.”
Fair Play opens the season at the Humansville Tournament from Nov. 26 through Dec. 1.
