Aides for Heritage Hills boys, Oldenburg Academy girls recognized by Indiana Basketball Coaches Association
Josh Wetzel of Heritage Hills and Brian Samples of Oldenburg Academy will receive special awards from the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association, it was announced Monday (March 24).
Wetzel, a long-time boys' assistant coach, and Samples, an 11-year girls' assistant coach and eight-year girls' head coach, each will be recognized as a 2025 IBCA Assistant Coach of the Year.
This is the eighth year that the IBCA is recognizing assistant coaches with an award. The awards are going to two coaches who have contributed in a significant way to their respective schools' athletic programs.
These awards will be presented during the 2025 IBCA Clinic on April 24-25 at Mt. Vernon High School in Fortville.
Previous IBCA Assistant Coach of the Year honors have gone to Roger Bowling of Union County in 2018; Clark Miles of Jeffersonville and Danny Pierce of Crawfordsville in 2019; Jim Brothers of North Putnam and J.R. Moffatt of Hamilton Heights in 2020; Hassan Abdullah of Penn and Jim Higdon of Edinburgh in 2021; Ray Weatherford of Eastern (Pekin) and Scott Reid of Crown Point in 2022; J.D. Miller of Connersville and Stephanie Richie of Evansville Central in 2023; and Dean Scott of Barr-Reeve and Bill Lane of Jennings County in 2024.
Information on Wetzel and Samples, the 2025 honorees, follows.
IBCA Assistant Coach of the Year: Josh Wetzel, Heritage Hills boys
Josh Wetzel has been an assistant coach in the Heritage Hills boys’ basketball program for the past 22 seasons. He has been a fixture as a player or coach in southern Indiana basketball for at least a decade longer.
Wetzel started his coaching career in as an eighth-grade coach at Heritage Hills Middle School from 2001-03. He then moved to Heritage Hills High School, where he has been the JV coach and varsity assistant from 2003 to the present. He has worked for head coaches Marty Echelbarger (2003-07), Matt Sisley (2007-16) and Nate Hawkins (2016-present). Thus, Wetzel has been named an IBCA Assistant Coach of the Year for 2025.
“Josh has made a major impact on the many players he has coached over the past 22 years,” Hawkins said in nominating Wetzel. “Josh also is a middle school teacher and has stayed connected with many of his former players, helping mentor many into the profession that they have chosen to pursue.
“It has been a joy working with Josh for the past nine years and seeing how he has helped develop our young men into better players and people outside of basketball. Both items always have been the goal for him.”
Wetzel is a life-long member of the Lincoln City area and is a 1997 graduate of Heritage Hills High School. He played basketball for four seasons in high school, was part of a sectional champion as a senior and was named all-Pocket Athletic Conference and to the HBCA East-West All-Star Classic. He also played three years of football and one year of baseball for the Patriots.
He went on to play basketball at Brescia College (Ky.), where he earned a bachelor’s degree in education in 2002. He later earned a master’s degree in education from Oakland City University in 2008. He currently is in his 23rd year as a science teacher at Heritage Hills Middle School.
“Many people look up to Josh and know that he is a stable force of the boys’ basketball program and school,” Hawkins said. “He is a dedicated member of our community and loves working with all of our Patriots. Josh has made a major impact on our school and continues to pour his heart into our community. He loves his students, players and co-workers at Heritage Hills.
“If you ask anyone about Josh, the first thing they will tell you is how dedicated he is to the job he does for our students. Josh has always done what is right and willing to take on any task that is asked of him. He gets the most out of his student-athletes through the positive leadership that he has shown over the years.”
Wetzel enjoys hunting, fishing and traveling with his family during his free time.
He and his wife, Amber, have three children – Allie, 19; Tait, 16; Ty, 14.
Josh Wetzel of Heritage Hills and Brian Samples of Oldenburg Academy will receive special awards from the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association, it was announced Monday (March 24).
Wetzel, a long-time boys' assistant coach, and Samples, an 11-year girls' assistant coach and eight-year girls' head coach, each will be recognized as a 2025 IBCA Assistant Coach of the Year.
This is the eighth year that the IBCA is recognizing assistant coaches with an award. The awards are going to two coaches who have contributed in a significant way to their respective schools' athletic programs.
These awards will be presented during the 2025 IBCA Clinic on April 24-25 at Mt. Vernon High School in Fortville.
Previous IBCA Assistant Coach of the Year honors have gone to Roger Bowling of Union County in 2018; Clark Miles of Jeffersonville and Danny Pierce of Crawfordsville in 2019; Jim Brothers of North Putnam and J.R. Moffatt of Hamilton Heights in 2020; Hassan Abdullah of Penn and Jim Higdon of Edinburgh in 2021; Ray Weatherford of Eastern (Pekin) and Scott Reid of Crown Point in 2022; J.D. Miller of Connersville and Stephanie Richie of Evansville Central in 2023; and Dean Scott of Barr-Reeve and Bill Lane of Jennings County in 2024.
Information on Wetzel and Samples, the 2025 honorees, follows.
IBCA Assistant Coach of the Year: Josh Wetzel, Heritage Hills boys
Josh Wetzel has been an assistant coach in the Heritage Hills boys’ basketball program for the past 22 seasons. He has been a fixture as a player or coach in southern Indiana basketball for at least a decade longer.
Wetzel started his coaching career in as an eighth-grade coach at Heritage Hills Middle School from 2001-03. He then moved to Heritage Hills High School, where he has been the JV coach and varsity assistant from 2003 to the present. He has worked for head coaches Marty Echelbarger (2003-07), Matt Sisley (2007-16) and Nate Hawkins (2016-present). Thus, Wetzel has been named an IBCA Assistant Coach of the Year for 2025.
“Josh has made a major impact on the many players he has coached over the past 22 years,” Hawkins said in nominating Wetzel. “Josh also is a middle school teacher and has stayed connected with many of his former players, helping mentor many into the profession that they have chosen to pursue.
“It has been a joy working with Josh for the past nine years and seeing how he has helped develop our young men into better players and people outside of basketball. Both items always have been the goal for him.”
Wetzel is a life-long member of the Lincoln City area and is a 1997 graduate of Heritage Hills High School. He played basketball for four seasons in high school, was part of a sectional champion as a senior and was named all-Pocket Athletic Conference and to the HBCA East-West All-Star Classic. He also played three years of football and one year of baseball for the Patriots.
He went on to play basketball at Brescia College (Ky.), where he earned a bachelor’s degree in education in 2002. He later earned a master’s degree in education from Oakland City University in 2008. He currently is in his 23rd year as a science teacher at Heritage Hills Middle School.
“Many people look up to Josh and know that he is a stable force of the boys’ basketball program and school,” Hawkins said. “He is a dedicated member of our community and loves working with all of our Patriots. Josh has made a major impact on our school and continues to pour his heart into our community. He loves his students, players and co-workers at Heritage Hills.
“If you ask anyone about Josh, the first thing they will tell you is how dedicated he is to the job he does for our students. Josh has always done what is right and willing to take on any task that is asked of him. He gets the most out of his student-athletes through the positive leadership that he has shown over the years.”
Wetzel enjoys hunting, fishing and traveling with his family during his free time.
He and his wife, Amber, have three children – Allie, 19; Tait, 16; Ty, 14.
