Rice Comes Home to Whiteford Bench
January 22, 2016
By Doug Donnelly
Special for Second Half
John Rice thought he found the perfect match for his two passions in life – fishing and basketball. By day, he could spend hours fishing off the Florida coast. When the afternoon rolled around, he would hit the gymnasium to coach basketball.
“I would have been perfectly satisfied doing that this winter,” Rice said.
That is, until Rice’s seventh-grade granddaughter Emma called.
“It was last March and we were in Florida and she was back home in Ottawa Lake,” Rice recalls. “She calls me up and says, ‘Grandpa, my team has a tournament that we are playing in and I want you to come watch me. And, I want you to coach my team next year.’”
Rice hung up the phone and told his wife, Sandy, they were headed home.
“We packed our stuff and went home,” Rice said. “It was a couple of weeks earlier than we had planned, but we got home in time for her tournament.”
A couple weeks later, after he agreed to become the seventh-grade girls basketball coach at Whiteford for the 2015-16 season, Bobcat varsity boys coach Jim Ross resigned. Athletic Director Nate Gust – who played for Rice when he was coaching at Whiteford in the early 2000s, asked Rice if he was interested in the varsity job. He decided to take it and is back at the helm of the Bobcats this season – 13 after ending his 30-year coaching career at Whiteford.
“Coaching basketball is something I love to do and, health-wise, I think it keeps me young,” said Rice, who celebrated his 70th birthday last summer. “I still love the game. When Emma asked me to coach her team, I couldn’t say no.”
Rice also couldn’t say no to coaching the varsity boys and helping to return the team to prominence. Whiteford went an uncharacteristic 4-17 in 2014-15 but is off to a 6-4 start under Rice.
“It’s a challenge, but I love challenges,” Rice said. “I enjoyed my time at Whiteford before, and I’m enjoying it now.”
This is his second stint as the head coach of Whiteford, having coached the Bobcats from 1974 to 2003, when he amassed 400 wins and collected eight District and eight league championships.
“The big thing was just getting acclimated to the kids here,” said Rice during a break in practice recently. “Being away so long, I was not able to follow these kids as they progressed through junior high or junior varsity basketball. I had to get to know them, and they have to get to know me. They’ve responded well, but we are still getting to know one another.”
Rice grew up in Bladensburg, Ohio, where he was an honorable mention all-state guard in Ohio’s smallest division in 1961. He was a factory worker, then college student who got his first varsity coaching job in 1969 at Dansville (Ohio) High School. He spent two years there, moved on to Mount Vernon Bible College – known now as Mount Vernon Nazarene – before moving north into Michigan.
He made Whiteford his home – especially the gymnasium just off exit 3 of US-23. His Bobcats won their first District title in his third year and their first Tri-County Conference title in his seventh. By the early 1980s, Rice had a Class D powerhouse. His 1981-82 team went 21-2, and he was named the Class D Coach of the Year by The Associated Press. His Bobcats won five league titles and four District crowns alone during the 1980s. He’s also had a good run of coaching all-state players – no fewer than six Bobcats that he coached earned first or second-team all-state honors.
Rice coached the Bobcats through the 2002-03 season, which happened to be the best in school history. Whiteford won its first 23 games, finished 23-1 and ended the season ranked among the top Class C teams in the state. Soon after the season ended, Rice resigned with 410 wins at Whiteford.
“I just felt the time was right for me to step aside and let someone else coach,” Rice said. “It was time. I felt good about what I had accomplished, and I was leaving the program in good shape. It was a good time.”
Just because Rice wasn’t at Whiteford, however, didn’t mean the coaching bug left him. In the dozen seasons since, he’s coached 11 of them. That includes varsity stints at Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard, Flat Rock and Toledo Bowsher. He’s been the junior varsity head coach at Toledo Woodward, the JV coach at Sylvania Southview and a varsity assistant at Lake Worth Christian in Boynton Beach, Fla., about 45 minutes north of Fort Lauderdale on Florida’s east coast. The only time Rice didn’t coach was one season during which he had back surgery.
“I started the season as an assistant, but decided to focus on my health,” he said. “I went to a specialist and found I needed surgery. Every other year, I’ve coached in some capacity. I’ve coached with a lot of different guys and observed lots of different styles.”
His return to Whiteford has kept him busy. He is officially head coach of both Bobcats middle school girls teams and the varsity boys. Some days, he has practices from 3 p.m. until 7 p.m. He also stops by the girls varsity practice when he can, which itself is nothing new. In addition to all of his years with the Bobcats boys program, he coached the Whiteford JV girls for 32 seasons and the varsity girls for three.
“I’ll practice four straight hours some days,” he said. “It’s a tough transition going from seventh-grade girls to varsity boys. You have to adjust your voice.”
In the first half of the season, the Bobcats have beaten arch-rival Summerfield in overtime, beaten Blissfield and have already passed last season’s team win total despite starting the season with just three seniors and a host of underclassmen – including five sophomores – on the roster.
“One of my philosophies has always been to bring up the underclassmen and build the team that way,” Rice said. “It has worked out very well for my teams at Whiteford and at other schools. When the younger kids get experience, it usually pays off in the end.”
He also has continued his typical high-tempo offense with pressing and trapping on defense.
“That’s the type of basketball that I like to play,” he said. “I haven’t changed my philosophy much. You have to adapt from year-to-year, depending on the kids you have, but the philosophy stays the same.”
The middle school girls start games later this month.
“It’s keeping my young again,” he said.
Rice’s return has been welcomed by the community, especially several of his former players who have stopped by the old gym to catch five minutes of the practices they remember so well or to just say hi before a game. A lot of former players have left comments on Facebook, too. Among the players on his roster now are Cody and Jesse Kiefer. During his first stint at Whiteford, Rice coached both the Kiefers’ parents.
“I’m having fun,” Rice said. “I’m comfortable here. I feel back at home. This has energized me.”
Rice by the numbers
|
VARSITY HEAD COACH |
YRS |
W |
L |
|
|
Danville (Ohio) |
2 |
27 |
12 |
|
|
Ottawa Lake Whiteford |
30 |
410 |
247 |
|
|
Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard |
2 |
13 |
28 |
|
|
Flat Rock |
1 |
4 |
17 |
|
|
Toledo Bowsher (Ohio) |
2 |
9 |
29 |
|
|
Ottawa Lake Whiteford |
1 |
6 |
4 |
* |
|
TOTALS |
38 |
469 |
337 |
|
|
*Through Jan. 21, 2016 |
Past Wildcats Bringing Valuable Experiences Home as Three Rivers' New Hoops Coaches
By
Scott Hassinger
Special for MHSAA.com
December 2, 2025
THREE RIVERS – Basketball has always been a passion for rookie Three Rivers coaches Drew Bosma and Michael Morrison.
The two former Wildcats aim to bring that same level of energy they exhibited during their playing careers as they embark on their first varsity coaching stints.
Both Bosma and Morrison have brought along a few familiar faces as they begin working to rebuild Three Rivers' strong basketball tradition.
Bosma, a 2009 graduate, replaced long-time mentor Brian Burg as the Wildcats' varsity boys coach, while Morrison has taken the reins of the girls program from Carley Shoesmith.
As a student-athlete at Three Rivers, Bosma excelled in football, basketball, baseball and track & field. He continued his playing career at Alma College and Liberty University before returning home and completing his undergraduate studies in psychology through online courses.
"My psychology background has been useful in my coaching career. The kids you work with have so many different issues they encounter than when I was in school," said Bosma, who is employed in the RV Industry at Grand Design in Elkhart, Ind.
Bosma's early shift works out perfectly with his coaching duties. After 11 seasons as Three Rivers’ JV boys coach, he spent the last two as a varsity assistant at Portage Northern. His immediate goal is to renew enthusiasm within the program.
"My experience with Three Rivers basketball as a player was a very good one. I want to build the culture to the point where people want to be here, the effort isn't questioned and (we) have kids who enjoy the game," Bosma said. "I've had a lot of good mentors in this game. Now that I'm a head coach, I want our players to be able to step onto the court and play freely. Yelling after every mistake they make isn't going to teach them anything. They are going to make mistakes in life, and they have to understand it’s ok to mess up and learn from those mistakes.”
Bosma's additional goals this season are simple ones.
"I want our kids to make it known that we have competed hard in every game with a no-quit attitude. It's a coach’s dream to win every game, but I want to make sure these kids are becoming better people as well as basketball players," Bosma said.
Long-range goals include increasing interest among students to try out for the team. He and his staff have organized the Three Rivers NextGen Boys' Basketball Program for students in kindergarten through eighth grade that will begin in January and focus on building skills and nurturing players who may fill the ranks down the road.
Bosma's coaching philosophy includes being tough on his players while showing that he truly cares about their well-being.
"As a coach I'm going to be hard on you, but these guys know that it’s out of love and concern for them,” he said. “They understand that anything I say to them is meant truthfully, and it comes from the heart. I want them to know they can come and talk to me. I want them to return 10-12 years later and notice the same type of feeling in this program. All of my coaches are either former teammates of mine or guys who played for me.”
Tirrell Hausmanis, a former hoops star at Three Rivers, serves as Bosma's varsity assistant. Brenden Brown is the Wildcats' junior varsity mentor, and alumnus Thomas O'Dell is the freshman coach.
"Having Three Rivers alumni on our coaching staff teaches these kids how important basketball is to our community," Bosma said.
Offensively, Bosma expects the Wildcats to be able to stay in space and use their long wing players and better shooters to their advantage. Among the top returners are junior point guard Brayden Carpenter, 6-foot-6 senior forward Zander Barth (who is committed to Central Michigan for football), and senior forward Carter Langston.
Carpenter averaged 13 points per game as a sophomore, as Three Rivers finished 7-15.
"You can tell there's a different attitude under the new coaching staff. There are lot of guys now who want to put in the extra time and energy to get better,” Carpenter said. “Our communication on the court has improved, and Coach Bosma's system allows us to play freely without worrying about the consequences of making a mistake.”
Three Rivers looks to be more adaptable at the defensive end.
"Defensively I want to change things up all the time. We don't want to just sit back in one zone or play man-to-man, but rather press whenever we can,” Bosma said. “We have a group that has improved its basketball IQ, which allows us to do so much more as coaches. We have good team camaraderie and kids who are going to play for each other. These guys are more excited about getting the win rather than what shows up in the box score.”
Bosma has seven seniors on his roster, but Three Rivers still is a fairly young team in terms of experience.
"We have long and athletic kids and guys who could be pretty good once they build their confidence level. We have great guards and kids who like to defend. Defense has become somewhat of a lost art in high school basketball. We have the tools though to be a successful basketball team," Bosma said.
Morrison, a 2003 Three Rivers graduate who played football, basketball and baseball for the Wildcats, has taken the reins of the girls program. After high school, Morrison attended Ferris State University where he graduated with a psychology degree as well. He is employed as a probation officer for the state.
Morrison has extensive experience coaching basketball. He started out coaching travel basketball in Paw Paw while also coaching high school teams at Kalamazoo Loy Norrix, Vicksburg and Three Rivers, including the last five years as the JV boys coach under Burg. He also served as an assistant men's coach at Glen Oaks Community College under Mike Elliott.
"Working under Mike taught me so much more about basketball and has made me an even better coach. That time was very beneficial," Morrison said.
Morrison's immediate goal is to provide stability in the girls program.
"These girls have had several coaches in the last few years. I want to provide some stability and help the program grow from the lower levels,” he said. “Obviously you want to win championships, but right now we have to start with attainable goals like finishing over .500, which we haven't done in a while.”
Other goals that Morrison feels are within Three Rivers’ grasp are finishing in the top half of the Wolverine Conference and competing for a District title. The Wildcats were 8-14 last season and tied for sixth in the league.
His philosophy centers around pace and space.
"I want to get up and down the floor and defend. We want to execute an offense in the halfcourt, but also get up and down the floor and get some fastbreaks when we can. We spent the first couple weeks of practice working on executing things the right way," Morrison said.
Senior guard Dani Glass, a second-team all-Wolverine Conference pick last season, returns for her fourth varsity season. Glass, who averaged 12 points per game as a junior, has committed to play at Kalamazoo Valley Community College.
"Dani makes us go and is our catalyst for everything we do offensively. We expect more from her this season as she gets ready for the next level," Morrison said.
Sophomore post player Braylee Burg will be another key component for the Wildcats, along with senior defensive specialist Jersey Roehrs.
"I feel I help my team most with my ability to box out and create a lane for my guards along with providing rebounding. I want to work on finishing stronger at the rim this year,” Burg said. “Our coaching staff has us doing fun drills that are getting us ready for the season. We want to get the ball down the floor more effectively and set up our offense."
Morrison is most excited about his team's work ethic.
"We are very excited about this team's potential and are really leaning heavily on our seniors to give us a big great burst of energy and bring everyone else along,” Morrison said. “People are going to see a very well-disciplined group that works hard and together as a team. We are working extremely hard on our communication and shooting as well."
Parker Ellifritz, who ranks among Three Rivers’ all-time leading scorers, serves as Morrison's varsity assistant. Olivia Hancock, whose played on the 2016 Class B championship team at Marshall during her prep days, fills the role of junior varsity coach with Payge Ellifritz, Parker's sister, serving as her assistant.
Scott Hassinger is a contributing sportswriter for Leader Publications and previously served as the sports editor for the Three Rivers Commercial-News from 1994-2022. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Berrien, Cass, St. Joseph and Branch counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Above, the Three Rivers boys basketball coaching staff, from left to right: junior varsity coach Brenden Brown, head varsity coach Drew Bosma, varsity assistant Tirrell Hausmanis and freshman coach Thomas O'Dell. Below, the girls basketball coaching staff, also from left to right: varsity assistant Parker Ellifritz, head varsity coach Michael Morrison and junior varsity coach Olivia Hancock. (Middle) Junior point guard Brayden Carpenter (0) returns for his second varsity season at Three Rivers. (Below) Senior Braylee Burg (52) returns for her second varsity season for Three Rivers. (Photos by Scott Hassinger.)