Rich Central Graduate Bobby Smith Appreciates Special Season Even More Today

Bobby Smith remembers the feeling like it was yesterday.

Even though the Rich Central boys basketball team surprised many by reaching the state championship game in 1986, losing to highly touted King in the final wasn’t easy.

“We didn’t think we’d get to the championship game that season, but once we did, we didn’t think we could lose,” said Smith, who was a junior that season. “We had won like 27 games in a row and never fathomed losing. Talk about tears. After the game, and long after they cut all the lights off in the gym, we were still crying in the locker room. We felt terrible when we didn’t win because we thought we let the whole community down.”

In reality, the Olympians’ special season was greatly appreciated in Olympia Fields and the surrounding communities.

“I’ll always remember coming home (from state) the next day,” Smith said. “There was a fire truck that took us all around the neighborhoods. People were in their yards waving and shouting to us and it was like being in a parade. Everybody treated us like we won. It was awesome. Then, we went to the gym, which was packed and they introduced us with our trophy and people were going crazy. It was just a great experience.”

King, led by Marcus Liberty, was the No. 1 team in the country that season and was crushing the competition.

Rich Central’s small, but talented team, was led by point guard Smith and Kendall Gill, who went on to star at the University of Illinois before a successful NBA career. Gill’s brother, Keith, was also a starter along with Maurice Rayford and the late Charles Warnell.

The Olympians gave King a battle, but lost the championship game 47-40. Rich Central’s state appearance was the first and only one in program history.

“The memories last forever,” said Smith, who is an instructional assistant in the English department at Rich Central and has worked at the school on and off since 1996. “I’m still close with Kendall and Keith is a good friend of mine. I think I took that experience for granted at the time and didn’t realize how fortunate I was to be part of what we did. It’s a nice thing for a young person to experience.

"High school was kind of like our 15 minutes of fame, but you don’t realize it at the time because you are so engrossed in what you’re trying to do. It moves so fast. I tell young kids these days to enjoy this time because before you know it, you’re 40 and it seems like yesterday. You just learn to appreciate it more as time goes on.”

Smith helped the Olympians compile an impressive 76-10 record during his three-years on varsity. After Kendall Gill graduated, Smith led the Olympians to a 23-4 record, but they were upset in the regional final by Homewood-Flossmoor.

Smith earned second-team all-state honors in 1987 and was named the Most Valuable Player of the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association All-Star game his senior year.

“Bobby might be my all-time favorite player because of the way he played,” said IBCA Hall of Famer Ron Brauer, who was the head coach of the state runner-up team. “He was a 6-foot guard that was just perpetual motion. We played a trapping defense and he was on the point, which is a very demanding position. He just never slowed down and was in there every minute of every game.

“He just had this determination. No matter what you asked him to do, even when it was almost impossible to do, he’d somehow find a way to get the job done. He was a tremendous defensive player and just a tremendous player. He was the unsung hero in respect to Kendall Gill being on the team, but Bobby was really the leader of the pack.”

Smith, who still has a passion for basketball, wishes some aspects of the sport remained like the old days.

“Watching young people today, they always have this big rivalry with each other, whether it’s Rich South or Rich East,” Smith said. “Sometimes it turns ugly and into fights and arguments. I was always good friends with the people we played against. We were competitive and competed hard against each other, but then we’d hang out at the Big Boys or White Castle after games and discuss what the teams were doing. I don’t ever recall one fight. I had a ball back then and not much of my life since has compared to those days.”

Rich Central is currently seeking a new head boys basketball coach and Smith has thrown his name into the hat for the opening.

“It would be an honor to coach at my alma mater,” Smith said.

Memorable Battles

Smith still laughs at the notion that people assume Kendall Gill and he were best friends during their glory days.

“Our practices against each other were ridiculous,” Smith said. “He shared the spotlight with me and his brother and it was kind of a sticky situation. I was super feisty and we’d go back and forth against each other. The team took on Kendall’s work ethic, but the team took on my personality of not fearing anybody. I was super aggressive and my aggression was a gift and curse for me. Kendall and I had some of the most heated arguments you could have and still be teammates. People always thought we were super, duper close, but we weren’t at the time because we were both so competitive. We were each other’s main competition and I think we made each other better.”

Brauer remembers those practices vividly.

“Practices were very intense,” said Brauer, who lives in Crete. “It was mutual respect, but they went at each other. It’s a situation where Kendall was getting all the press, but Bobby and his brother Keith were the body and guts of the team. They really held the team together.”

Smith and Gill, who had a 15-year NBA career and is currently a co-studio analyst for Chicago Bulls’ Pregame Live and Postgame Live on Comcast SportsNet, became closer friends after high school.

Smith has nothing but respect for Gill, who is considered one of the best athletes ever to come out of Rich Central.

“I played with four of five NBA players, but I never knew a person that worked harder than Kendall,” Smith said. “He’s like Charles Atlas now, but he was 145-150 pounds and 6-2 in high school. He’d wake up at 4:30 in the morning and do his lifting, running and swimming. He’s a workaholic and he’s been that way since he was 14. Expectations were always high for Kendall and everyone thought he could do special things and people thought that about me as well. We both became all-state players. Kendall opened doors for younger people at Rich Central to even imagine making it to the pros. He’s the pride of our school and hopefully some younger people here can do what he has done.”

College Life

While Kendall Gill went on to star at Illinois where he led the Fighting Illini to the Final Four his junior season, along with future NBA players Liberty, Nick Anderson and Kenny Battle, Smith attended Oral Roberts for a season.

When rumors started swirling that the program was going to drop its NCAA status and compete at the NAIA level, Smith decided to transfer to Northern Illinois, which was a struggling program at the time. After sitting out a season, he eventually played a role in the Huskies earning a trip to the NCAA Tournament in 1991.

Northern Illinois was a No. 13 seed and lost 75-68 in the first round to No. 4 seed St. John, which was led by Malik Sealy. NIU’s only other NCAA Tournament appearances were in 1982 and 1996.

“At the time, I thought I had to play at a higher level for people to recognize me, but I learned it doesn’t matter what level you play on,” Smith said of his decision to transfer. “If you’re a winner, people will find you. I played well (in college), but not well enough to continue playing. I had overseas offers, but at the time, it was pretty much NBA or bust. I could make just as much in a regular job. My wife got pregnant and it was off to work for me. I had a great time in college, almost too much.”

Like Father, Like Son

Smith, whose father Bobby Smith Sr. was a star basketball player at Crane High School, feels honored to have coached both of his sons in the sport that has always been dear to his heart.

Chris Smith turned 19 April 19 and younger brother, Marcus, turned 13, April 18.

“One of my best times ever was last year and the year before,” Bobby Smith said. “My oldest son, Chris, transferred from (Homewood-Flossmoor) and went to Rich Central. He wore No. 30 like me and was the team MVP. He then went to North Central College in Naperville and helped them win their first conference championship since 1988 as a freshman. It was a proud moment for me.”

Marcus Smith played on the Parker Junior High School (Flossmoor) basketball team that finished 22-0.

“He’s tough,” Smith said. “I coach him for the Mean Streets team and I coached my older son in AAU for a year. It’s nice to have kids doing the same thing you enjoy. I bring them to (Rich Central) and they see my picture on the wall and the records we set at the time. When we see people in the community that remember me, it’s hard for them to believe that they still remember me. I’m blessed. I didn’t get to go to the NBA like Kendall. I thought I had a great shot at that, but when it didn’t work out, I wanted to be like my dad and have a son. I have two great sons.”