Tiverton Basketball Coach Leaves His Legacy to the Players

The special moments of Jerry Arcouette's 36 years of coaching basketball include watching players triumph on behalf of the team.

He remembers when former player Ricky Sanford, as a freshman, had a near-death experience when a blood clot and vein burst in his brain. Then, as a senior in the last game of the season, he was able to suit up and get on the floor and make a crucial hook shot from the foul line.

"He was as talented a player we ever had," Arcouette said in an interview last week before the team's  in the state tournament.

Tiverton, Acrouette noted, is a "very special place."

"It's greatest resource is its youth, because the kids who grow up here, like myself, have a sense of pride about what they accomplish," he said.

Arcouette, 58, announced his retirement at the final home game last Tuesday, surrounded by family and close friends. He grew up in Tiverton and played basketball as a student. He started as freshman coach in the late 1960s, then became an assistant coach in 1978 and head coach in 1993.

"I felt as though it was time," Arcouette said about his retirement. "The job is one that takes a great deal of energy and time, but it's, by far, worth every second of time you put into it. It's the most enjoyable thing I've ever done."

Arcouette, a retired history teacher, said he did not want to overstay his tenure and noted he felt it's time to give Assistant Coach Dave Landoch his opportunity.

"He has a tremendous rapport with the kids," he said.

Arcouette cannot forget the magical in the state tournament, upsetting powerhouse programs like Bishop Hendricken. It was a run that led them to a against Central High School at the Ryan Center, where Tiverton fans crowded the south entrance following the game screaming "Jerry! Jerry!"

The Tigers ultimately in the state championship, but Tiverton's dream run was all the talk on the Rhode Island sports landscape.

He said this year's team knew they had something to prove, especially since several of the players, like Alex Rosa and Geoff McNally, were part of last year's run. The Tigers had a bumpy start to this year, but managed to win five games in a row to close the season.

"You measure a person's heart in a time of adversity, not when thing's are rolling," Arcouette said. "When we were struggling, these kids were trying. It was only a matter of time before they got it."

Rosa, reached by phone Monday, said he speaks for everyone when he says that Acrouette has been a great motivational coach.

"He's just a good guy, on and off the field," he said. "He’s a great coach. He’s taught me a lot of stuff about basketball and how to be a leader. He doesn’t do it the way a nice coach would with a soft voice. He’d yell at you and motivate you as any coach."

Athletic Director Bob Murray posted this on his Facebook page last week after the final home game of the season:

Jerry Arcouette coached his last home game at the high school last night. He submitted his letter of retirement from basketball to me. After so many years of some great basketball, outstanding experiences and lots of laughs Tiverton High School will miss Jerry. 

Arcuoette now lives in Little Compton with his wife, Gretchen. He works as a golf pro at Acoaxet Country Club in Westport.

"In the winter," he said, "I'll be looking for stuff to do."