Citing philosophical differences after meeting with athletic director Troy Diels, Matt Kramer resigned Friday as the Wilmington High School varsity boys basketball head coach.
“I am 100 percent at peace with it,” Kramer told the News Journal. “It was over a difference in philosophy about a lot of things.”
Wilmington was 18-25 in Kramer’s two seasons as head coach, including 8-12 during the pandemic-ridden 2020-21 season.
“The athletic department at WHS thanks coach Kramer for his time with the basketball program,” said Diels. “We wish him well in his future endeavors.”
The two years at WHS were up and down, but in opposite ways for the Hurricane. Kramer’s inaugural season started fast by winning three of the first four games. After going 3-9 in the middle of the year, Wilmington finished 4-3.
That solid finish did not carry over to this year.
“The pandemic made it hard to assess things,” Kramer said. “The interuptions in practice, that was a variable. Did the season end the way I would have liked for it to end? No. This whole Covid thing has made it really tough to assess.”
With Kramer being out early in the season because of Covid-19, WHS started 1-5 and lost three straight games.
“Then we had six uninterrupted weeks and we went 7-3,” Kramer said. “I think had I been there (for the start) things would have been different.”
However, the Hurricane limped home by losing its last four games.
“I have nothing but love for the players that were here my two years,” he said. “Through thick and thin … family forever.”
Kramer took over the WHS program from Michael Nozska who left Wilmington after 14 years to take the same position at Cincinnati St. Xavier High School.
“I have great respect for the folks who gave me an opportunity here … there is no animosity on my part,” Kramer said. “It just was not a great fit. What we had here, basically, is a philosophical difference with the way I like to play and what the powers that be here, the way they would like us to play. It is as simple as that.”
Kramer said the hardest part of the this decision was his family.
“I was ready to dig in and make an effort to get things done,” he said. “I moved my family here, bought a house here. I enjoy it here. I don’t know what will be next. It’ll be something. It always is. Just the nature of the job; that’s the way it is nowadays. You have a very short time to make a mark.”
