Gary Greene, the former George Washington and Nitro High boys basketball coach, will be recommended for the position of girls head basketball coach at South Charleston during the Oct. 15 meeting of the Kanawha County Board of Education.

"We're excited to have him,'' said SC principal Mike Arbogast, who submitted Greene for approval. "He knows the game. We expect big things from him.''

Greene, who most recently coached the Nitro boys team during the 2004-2005 season, will replace Tim Wells, who served as head coach for the SC girls team for four years and was an assistant for five seasons.

Greene said his first coaching job was as the girls head basketball coach at SC in the late 1980s. He also helped start and coach the first softball team at SC.

 "It's in my blood,'' said Greene, who has been an assistant boys basketball coach and boys and girls tennis coach the past two seasons at South Charleston Middle School. "I appreciate the opportunity Mr. Arbogast is giving me to get back in it.

"It's a great opportunity to return to high school basketball. I think basketball is basketball. I think I've got some experiences I can relate to the girls program. I know it's a young team. I'm just going to take what's there and have them play their best basketball by tournament time.''

Greene led the Nitro boys to the state tournament in 1999, falling in the Class AAA quarterfinals to North Marion 59-51. Greene resigned in September 2000 after learning his longtime assistant would not be able to coach that season.

Greene returned to the Wildcats for the 2004-2005 season, but resigned after 15 games citing "unfair basketball practice policies.'' He finished with a 39-21 record in parts of three seasons at Nitro.

Gary Greene, the former George Washington and Nitro High boys basketball coach, will be recommended for the position of girls head basketball coach at South Charleston during the Oct. 15 meeting of the Kanawha County Board of Education.

"We're excited to have him,'' said SC principal Mike Arbogast, who submitted Greene for approval. "He knows the game. We expect big things from him.''

Greene, who most recently coached the Nitro boys team during the 2004-2005 season, will replace Tim Wells, who served as head coach for the SC girls team for four years and was an assistant for five seasons.

Greene said his first coaching job was as the girls head basketball coach at SC in the late 1980s. He also helped start and coach the first softball team at SC.

 "It's in my blood,'' said Greene, who has been an assistant boys basketball coach and boys and girls tennis coach the past two seasons at South Charleston Middle School. "I appreciate the opportunity Mr. Arbogast is giving me to get back in it.

"It's a great opportunity to return to high school basketball. I think basketball is basketball. I think I've got some experiences I can relate to the girls program. I know it's a young team. I'm just going to take what's there and have them play their best basketball by tournament time.''

Greene led the Nitro boys to the state tournament in 1999, falling in the Class AAA quarterfinals to North Marion 59-51. Greene resigned in September 2000 after learning his longtime assistant would not be able to coach that season.

Greene returned to the Wildcats for the 2004-2005 season, but resigned after 15 games citing "unfair basketball practice policies.'' He finished with a 39-21 record in parts of three seasons at Nitro.

Greene resigned his position at GW prior to the 1997-98 season after posting a record of 124-61 in eight seasons. He took the Patriots to three state tournaments. GW lost to Woodrow Wilson in the Class AAA state title game in 1993.

Wells compiled a 58-35 record as head coach of the SC girls squad, guiding the Black Eagles to a Class AAA state runner-up finish in his first season in 2004-2005.

He led SC back to the state tournament after a two-year absence last season when the Black Eagles  upset state-ranked Nitro in the regional finals. The Black Eagles fell to Parkersburg South 70-56 in the state quarterfinals.

"I've got a different job,'' said Wells, who was also an assistant softball coach for seven years and an assistant girls soccer coach for one at SC. "This job will probably involve more travel time and a lot less freedom. I've been very fortunate. It's just time for me to step back and enjoy my family and watch the girls play.

"I'm definitely going to miss them, I know that. I've had a lot of fun with the kids. I think the program has come a long way. They've got some very talented kids coming back. They've got some freshmen coming in that will really help the team this year. I think they've got a good opportunity to have an outstanding season.''

Wells helped turn around an SC program that lost 46 straight games and oversaw the development of Division I players Alexis Hornbuckle, Renee Montgomery and Kaylyn Crosier. The Black Eagles won back-to-back Class AAA girls state championships during Wells' tenure as an assistant.

Gerald Burgy, the former SC girls head coach who guided the Black Eagles to a pair of state titles, will remain on the staff as an assistant. David Walker, a former SC boys basketball standout who has been a girls soccer coach the past several years, will join Greene's staff as an assistant.

Reach Tommy R. Atkinson at 348-4811 or tatkin...@wvgazette.com.