On Massey Basketball Blog, there is a regular series during the school year entitled, “Hall of Fame Insights.” This is the first of the 2026-7 school year with HOF basketball coach, Thom Sigel. Thom has the distinction of having won the Illinois Boys Basketball State Championship twice, once at Rock Falls and later at Rock Island. He is in IBCA HOF.
Coach Sigel started out as a coach at Galesburg HS before moving to Rock Falls. He finished his career at Rock Island HS.
Thom and I had a conversation, and agreed that there seems to be a trend in high school sports where more and more athletes are made to feel that the only purpose of high school sports is to get a college scholarship. Adults who put this pressure on high school athletes can take some of the joy out of playing high school sports.
Thom had a daughter and two sons who played college sports. Haley played volleyball at Lindwood, Colton played golf and basketball at Carthage, and Trey played basketball at UW-Platteville.
Although all three played college sports, that was not their focus while in high school. Their focus in high school was to enjoy their high school experience and to become the best high school player they could be.
I asked Coach Sigel to share how his kids navigated high school sports and turned the experience into such a positive experience. Here is what Thom had to say…
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| Haley |
Thom Sigel- Retired HOF Basketball Coach
I can speak on this from a coaching standpoint, and as a father of two boys who played 3 sports in high school. My daughter, on the other hand, ended up sticking with volleyball in high school after trying other sports growing up.
As a coach, I wanted players to be able to make the most of their high school experience - learning from different coaches, competing in different sports, and being able to make memories and friendships with teammates from different teams.
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| Colton |
One instance that comes to mind was in the summer of 2018. We had a guy who was going to play an important supporting role for us, but ended up being a starter. Basketball was considered his third sport, and he was trying to play baseball and attend all of his summer football workouts. He decided it was too much and was going to quit basketball.
I was not concerned from a selfish standpoint, but for this young man, especially after his mom told the coaches what he was going through. He felt that he couldn't miss ANYTHING in the summer for every sport. At that point the football coach and I both sat down with him and told him we were OK with him missing some workouts, and he decided to play all 3 sports his senior year. We beat two top 10 teams to win the Regional, and he thanked the coaches for not allowing him to quit because of the memories he made.
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| Thom with Trey |
Another example that comes to mind is our 1999 Rock Falls team that won the State Championship. Of the 14 players on our roster, 11 of them participated in a fall sport - football and cross country. We only had three varsity players (only one of our rotation guys) at open gyms. I know we all would love to have our players focused on our season and ready to go. But in the big picture, the basketball season is so long and there is time for our team to reach our peak by February.
As a father of two 3 sport boys, I saw how each sport helped them develop as athletes. My oldest son Trey played football, basketball, and baseball. My youngest son Colton played golf, basketball, and baseball. Football helped Trey develop physical and mental toughness, as well as leadership skills as the quarterback his senior year. The pressure, concentration, and the "next play/shot" mentality needed in golf helped Colton as an athlete. Baseball helped both of them to deal with pressure. Not only did they have to be at the plate in pressure at-bats, but they also had the pressure of being on the mound as pitchers growing up.
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| Trey |
I was also able to witness how much they enjoyed switching sports. They each would not touch a basketball for a couple of weeks after the season ended, and jumped right into baseball. I would like to add that we appreciated the support and cooperation of their high school coaches who supported them playing multiple sports, including AAU basketball during baseball when the schedule allowed.
One other story I have that relates to Trey's basketball recruitment was in the summer before his senior year. A well respected scouting service guy was talking to me about our players. He asked me if I was going to let Trey play football his senior year. I realized he was referring to him trying to earn a scholarship. I told him that Trey loved football, and that I wanted him to play. He seemed surprised, and I told him that not playing football was going to make Trey taller, quicker, or jump higher. His talents as a basketball player put him as a high D3 to potential D2 shooting guard and playing football, or not, wasn't going to change that. He apologized and said he has to catch himself sometimes from getting too wrapped up in the recruiting aspect.
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| Trey |
Finally, once Trey and Colton got to college to play basketball, they often talked about their experiences in their other sports. Trey always said he missed the Friday night football games. Colton also had the chance to play golf in college, but he would always talk about how much he missed playing baseball while he was in college. This was an indication of how much they gained personally and enjoyed their experiences playing other sports. Plus they have many special memories. In addition, they each ultimately ended up at colleges that were great fits where they had very good basketball careers.
There are some situations where certain athletes may benefit from specialization, but I believe those may in the minority. As parents, my wife and I are happy we supported the boys in playing other sports and making many special memories.
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| Colton |
“Hall of Fame Insights” is a regular feature of Massey Basketball Blog. Weekly a panel of coaches are asked questions about sports, coaching, parenting, and motivation.
The Hall of Fame coaches include: Thom Sigel (Rock Island, Basketball), Kathy Bresnahan (Iowa City West, Volleyball), Mark Massey (Clinton, Ia, Volleyball), Bob Anderson (Williamsfield, Basketball), Ralph Gallo (Richwoods, Girls Basketball), Debbie Coffman (Bloomington CC, Girls Basketball), Kimberly Barth (Washington, Girls Basketball), Larry Schulte (Alleman, Boys Basketball), Jeff Parsons, Wethersfield/Fulton, Basketball), Mark Cooper, Ottawa, Boys Basketball), Mike Cooper (Ottawa, Girls Basketball), Jim Martin (Lincolnway, Girls Basketball), Greg Bennett (Lewistown, Girls Basketball/Football), Greg King (Sterling, Football), Mike Tracey (Alleman/UTHS, Football), Vic Boblett (Rock Island, Football), Jim Engebretson (United, Football).
You can look back at previous posts on HOF Insights by clicking here…
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