Darren Kinnard
Section618.com
HARRISBURG — For the past 29 seasons, Randy Smithpeters has stalked the Harrisburg sidelines, leading the Bulldogs to more than 500 wins. Tuesday night, Smithpeters informed the Harrisburg school board there would not be a 30th season.
During the past month, Smithpeters was not sure he was going to be the one to make that decision.
Smithpeters is retiring as an administrator at Harrisburg High School in June. Illinois’ Teachers Retirement System requires retirees to completely detach from the school, meaning he had to resign as head boys basketball coach. After the detachment, retirees are able to return to work, but on a limited basis, such as a substitute teacher or as a coach. Smithpeters, who says he had every intention to continue coaching, turned in his letter of resignation to the board prior to its April 19th meeting, and the board accepted.
Smithpeters says he reapplied for the coaching job the very next day, well aware it would be the board’s decision whether or not to rehire him. He had seen it work out both ways for other veteran coaches in the region after they retired from school positions. Some were rehired, but some were not.
After going through the interview process like all other candidates, Smithpeters says he was informed privately that four members of the board were not in favor of rehiring him. But, at a special board meeting held May 13, the board rehired Smithpeters by a 5-0 vote.
Despite being rehired, Smithpeters remained skeptical. “I am convinced that the true vote is still 4-3,” Smithpeters told the board Tuesday night, reading from a prepared statement. “I was truly convinced of that when this morning, it was expressed to me a concern that if I upset a couple of board members, I would be fired at a special board meeting.”
Smithpeters concluded his statement to the board with this: “Some of my most truest and wise advisors individually asked me the same question, ‘is it all worth it?’ At this point, it is not basketball that creates the problem. I love basketball. Mr. Superintendent, you will be receiving my resignation as Head Basketball Coach by email in the next few days. Harrisburg High School Basketball will then be in the hands of the school board.”
“My final two words: ‘GO BULLDOGS!'”
Smithpeters was hired as the Bulldogs’ head coach in 1993. He took over a program that had posted only three winning seasons in the previous 20 years and had not won a regional title since 1971. Smithpeters’ teams won 20 or more games 13 times. The Bulldogs won 12 regional titles, six sectional titles, advanced to seven Sweet 16s and three Elite 8s, and won the 2A State Championship in 2013. Smithpeters was inducted into the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2017.