Mark Carpenter
Defender of the People
This will be the Ripley High School boys basketball team's third head coach in three seasons. The latest hire to take the helm for the Blue Jays is a familiar face to Adams County basketball fans. 20o7 West Union High School graduate Jeremy Bennington was recently approved by the Ripley Board of Education to take over the program for the 2024-25 season.
During his time at WUHS, Bennington was named first team district and led the Dragons to consecutive district championships. He then played collegiately at Southern State University and Shawnee State University where he was named an All-Conference player twice. Bennington also played semi-pro basketball in Kentucky and professionally overseas and is currently on the sidelines of the Southern Hills Athletic Conference.
“I've been coming back to the area for a while now, trying to give back in ways that I would have needed as a kid,” Bennington says. “For the last five or six years I've been back in Adams/Brown County in some way to help kids with basketball. What started with me coming back as a player and helping out with different teams at open gyms, practices or youth camps led to me training those same kids in the summer. As this expanded, I started adding weekly training clinics for youth, which led to organizing my own youth summer league a few years ago.”
“I've been traveling back and forth through the area for the past few years looking for the right opportunity to return full time as a teacher and coach in order to reach more kids through basketball. In that quest, I learned of the current situation in Ripley through a friend who played a key role in making this all happen. After numerous calls, texts, emails and meetings with the Ripley High School administration, I couldn't have found a better opportunity and a better fit at the school. They welcomed me warmly, made me feel needed and made me feel like I could make a big difference.”
The Blue Jays have struggled in recent seasons, but the new manager is confident he can get things going in the right direction.
“Taking over a program that has struggled for a couple of years is nothing to be scared of,” Bennington said. “I'm excited about new challenges and the opportunity to show all I'm capable of. We will focus on building a strong, disciplined program that emphasizes fundamentals and teamwork above all else. I will be ingraining a new culture of responsibility and perseverance at all levels, with an emphasis on both athletics and individual growth. I am confident that with the support of the school, the community and these athletes, we will be able to consistently compete and excel as a program.”
