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But how would you like to follow Coach
Alexander when he officially hangs 'em up? I don't know if I'd wish
that on anybody.
What has Alexander done in his mere 14
years at the helm of the Railers? All he's done is become the
winningest all-time coach, with 299 victories against only 104
losses. He has distanced himself from the pack, as the closest rival
is Loren Wallace with 271. Alexander has passed the legendary Paul
Johnson, who collected 196 wins, and Duncan Reed, who amassed 174
wins. Heck, he even has more wins than Roy S. Anderson (the guy the
Lincoln gym is named after), who tallied 195 in two stints with the
Railsplitters.
On top of that, Lincoln just happens to
be the all-time leader in most wins in the Central State Eight
conference, which was established in 1993. You would expect one or
two Springfield schools to be dominating this record with all of the
talent that comes out of that city, but they can't out-coach
Alexander.
The proof? How about Lincoln leading
all comers by a whopping 26 games? It will take several seasons of
near-perfect ball by someone and some pretty major slip-ups by
Lincoln for the records to even get close again. Lincoln leads the
league with 123 victories (which is about an .800 winning
percentage) while the next closest teams are Springfield with 97,
Lanphier with 94 and Southeast with 93. The rest aren't even in this
decade yet! Those wins have led to at least four league titles, one
of which was an outright title in 1998-99, and four other
second-place finishes, usually when Lincoln was supposed to be in a
rebuilding year. Incredibly during the entire 11-year conference
run, Lincoln has never finished lower than third in the league. That
kind of dominance is virtually unparalleled in the annals of central
Illinois basketball. And I didn't even list the accomplishments Neil
and his Railers had in the Big 12 before they made the switch to the
CS8!
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What else? Well, all of those victories
led to tough, pressure-packed games at the next level. All
Alexander's teams did in those contests was to amass 10 regional
titles, two sectional titles, one supersectional title and one Elite
Eight appearance, which was Lincoln's first in nearly 20 years. When
all those wins were tallied, Alexander had completed nine
20-win seasons in just 14 years
as the coach, and three others were 19-win seasons.
Some schools would be happy for one
20-win season and one regional title, but we have created a monster
here in Lincoln. Everyone in town expects us to win 20 every year;
so does everyone in central Illinois. How do you like that for
pressure?
Alexander has placed dozens of players
on the all-conference teams and sent dozens on to successful college
careers, including some kid named Brian Cook, now toting his wares
in the NBA for some team called the Lakers.
I don't know
about you, but I love challenges. However, the challenge of
following Neil Alexander at LCHS is something I would pass on 10 out
of 10 times. He is in the Hall of Fame for reasons. I have watched
and studied the game since I was a little kid, but I don't think
I've ever seen a coach quite like him. I don't know if the IBCA has
ever inducted anyone more deserving. This week the LDN salutes Neil
Alexander and his family on his 2004 induction into the IBCA Hall of
Fame. CONGRATULATIONS, Coach!
[Jeff Mayfield]
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