Some call them the greatest teams the 9th Region has ever seen.
On Friday night inside David Evans Fieldhouse in Covington, the band got back together. Holmes High School welcomed back the Bulldogs of 1976–78, the three straight region championship basketball teams that helped define an era and reshape the program’s legacy.
There were hugs, handshakes, smiles and a few tears as former players and coaches gathered on campus before Holmes tipped off against Dixie Heights. The reunion began in the school’s café, where stories flowed as easily as they once did on the fast break.
“A few guys couldn’t make it, but you know, I still socialize with, after all these years, some of these guys are lifelong friends,” Doug Schloemer said. “This is a fun night. I’m glad they did this. Coach Flynn is going to be 90 and I still go out to lunch with him a few times a year.”
Then came the moment that brought it all full circle.
Just like they had decades earlier, members of those storied teams were announced and introduced on the court at The Fieldhouse, receiving a well-earned ovation from a crowd standing on the shoulders of history before the Bulldogs and Colonels went to battle.
Legendary head coach Reynolds Flynn was there, as were Holmes greats Doug Schloemer and Dicky Beal, among many others. Laughter filled the room, memories spilled out, and for a while, time rewound nearly 50 years back to 2500 Madison Avenue.
“As a graduate of Holmes, this night is not only important to me, but to all those involved,” current Bulldogs coach Sam Elsbernd said. “Mr. Huhn was able to rally all the troops and get them all back together. No one has more history and pride than us. This was a long time coming and it shows these kids we have now that it can happen here and anything is possible.”
Those teams didn’t just win…they revived Holmes basketball.
The 1976 Bulldogs captured the program’s first region championship in 25 years, igniting a run that saw Holmes win 10 region titles, reach 15 region finals, and qualify for 31 region tournaments from that stretch through 2013. It was dominance with a purpose.
The identity of those teams was simple and devastating: fast, athletic, and relentless. Long before the three-point line, Holmes was lighting up scoreboards, routinely piling up points in the 70s and 80s.
“We pressed all the time and were always in good condition,” Flynn said. “We ran, we didn’t stop. Always ran suicides after every practice.”
Schloemer etched his name into 9th Region lore, earning All-Tournament honors all three years. In the 1978 tournament, he and John “Bud” Wimzie were nearly unstoppable, combining for 133 points across three games. Add Beal to the mix, and many still believe that group was a state championship team, if not for controversy.
“We were loaded, especially my senior year,” Schloemer said. “I mean, we had Dickie, Phil Davis, who played at Central Arkansas, Todd Riley, who started the first half of the season. Then Elliott Simpson, Ricky Walton, Bud. We were loaded. There wasn’t a whole lot of drop off if starters had to come out. So I think it was depth. And Coach Flynn, I’ve never been in better shape in a basketball season in the four years that I played under him.”
In the closing seconds of the 1978 state championship game, a Shelby County defender blocked a Holmes shot with his hand clearly through the rim — a goaltend that went uncalled. The missed whistle denied Holmes its first state title and Northern Kentucky its first champion.
“That’s for sure one of the best teams Northern Kentucky has ever seen. They wanted to beat everybody by as much as they could,” Flynn said. “The 2009 Holmes team was really good, but I think we would have beat them. I still think our team would have beat them because we were quick.”
Beal’s high school career was nearly even more decorated. As a freshman, he was ruled ineligible for the postseason after mistakenly playing in an amateur game while preparing to move up from the freshman team, costing him a chance at four straight region championships.
“It was a Newport FOP team, I played on their team in the off season,” Beal said. “So my freshman season over and I didn’t realize that. I thought I could play anywhere. I just wanted to keep playing and it came back to haunt me.”
Beal later went on to play at Kentucky, winning MVP of the Mid-East Region in the NCAA tournament in 1984.
“Honestly, being at Covington Holmes was my best basketball experience and my worst as well, because we should have been the first team in Northern Kentucky to win the state championship,” Beal said.
The run finally stumbled in 1979, when Holmes surrendered a late lead to a Highlands team coached by Kenney Shields — who was also in attendance Friday night, sharing laughs and memories with his old coaching rival, Flynn.
Holmes would reclaim the region crown again in 1980, capping a five-year stretch that included five straight region final appearances and four championships — a golden era that still echoes through the Fieldhouse.
On Friday night, those echoes were loud once more.
The Bulldogs put up a valiant effort against Dixie Heights. They took a 19-17 lead into halftime and trailed by three with 11 seconds to play, eventually coming up short to the Colonels, 61-54.
“It was an honor to have all those guys back there. Seeing so many of the guys that helped build the program,” Elsbernd said. “It means a lot to me and our kids. We’re a few years away from seeing the rewards of hard work and we’re going to keep working at it.”
MORE PHOTOS: Slideshow provided by Charles Bolton
