Heiar reflects on his first recruits at Chipola

By Dustin Kent

Published: May 24, 2006

When Chipola basketball coach Greg Heiar welcomed his first recruiting class as the Indians head coach in 2004, he couldn’t have foreseen the success they would bring to his program.

But after a state championship, two Panhandle Conference titles and a school record for wins in 2004-05, the class that included Stefhon Hannah, Michael Taylor, Ryne Hamblet, Gerard Jackson and Pawel Malesa left an undeniable impact on Chipola basketball.

“Any time you have a group of guys that can win 63 games in a two year span, that’s pretty amazing,” Heiar said. “They really helped to change the perception of the program, in terms of our style, energy and defensive mentality.”

According to Heiar, they also brought an attitude to the program that he wants to be a staple of Chipola basketball.

“They played with a togetherness and a willingness to share the ball with each other and sacrifice for the team,” the coach said. “And they’re a big reason why I’m getting the recruits I’m getting now.”

The team accomplishments the Indians have had has resulted in individual success, as well, with every member of the 2004 freshman class moving on to four-year programs.

Hannah recently signed with Missouri, while Taylor will play for Iowa State, Hamblet for Bowling Green, Jackson for Louisiana Monroe and Malesa for Troy.

“We accomplished a lot while we were here,” Hamblet said of his fellow sophomores. “To win as many games as we did and to be the No. 1 team in the country....we had a great run.”

Unfortunately for the Indians, the run didn’t end the way they had hoped.

Chipola failed to win another state championship after losing a classic, triple-overtime game to Tallahassee Community College in the state championship game, a devastating loss that ended the Indians’ season.

“That was real tough,” Hamblet said. “We had a team that could have won it all. Unfortunately, we just came up a little short.”

Taylor shares Hamblet’s regret.

“I felt like we should’ve had a national championship banner here,” he said. “There’s a lot of regret about that. But that’s just how the ball rolls sometimes.”

Heiar tried to put a positive spin on the loss.

“I think (the players) will learn from it,” he said. “I think they got a lot out of it. It makes me proud that, in the end, we went down fighting.”

Heiar said that the players’ success at Chipola and their moving on to big-time college programs meant a lot to him personally.

“It makes you feel good about what you’re doing,” the coach said. “It tells me that what we’re doing is working. I think (the players) will look back on their time here one day and say ‘wow, that was a great opportunity for me.’”

Hamblet said that he already feels that way.

“I’m going to miss it,” he said of his time at Chipola. “The people here showed us a lot of love and support.”

Heiar said that the success of the sophomore class isn’t surprising, given the way they approached the game.

“When you have a group that is willing to work hard, trust the system and believe in each other, you’re going to have great success,” the coach said.

“I think we took the program to the next level,” Taylor said. “Everybody got along so well and everybody cared about each other. I couldn’t have asked to be a part of a better team.”