Old School Memories

By John Burbridge

sports@charlescitypress.com

CHARLES CITY — Likely knowing such a question was coming, Todd Forsyth had the answer ready on demand.

The perfunctory query was … What is the most unforgettable moment during your tenure at Charles City?

“It was when we hosted Forest City in that gym over there,” Forsyth said while referencing the old high school fieldhouse which has taken more of an auxiliary role since the addition of the modern and spacious Comet Gym that came packaged with the new middle school.

“They were the No. 2 team in the state. We were the No. 3 team.  There were four future Division I players in that game. The place was packed. (Former Iowa State head coach) Larry Eustachy was in attendance.

“David Rottinghaus scored 36 points in the first half alone as we jumped out to a big lead and eventually won by 6 or 7.”

As Forsyth was relating that memory, Charles City High School principal Larry Wolfe walked by and shook his head.

“No … that wasn’t your most unforgettable moment,” Wolfe said. “It was when you walked out onto the court with your son the first time as coach and player.”

Just then, Forsyth’s eyes get a little misty. “Yeah … you’re right. That was my most unforgettable moment.”

Forsyth has been a teacher, coach and administrator at Charles City for 24 years. Much of his tenure included an extended run as the Comets’ head boys basketball coach where he coached three future Division I college players including Rottinghaus, who continued his career at Wyoming; Nate Buss, who went on to play for Northern Iowa; and Greg Bruner, who is still the Iowa Hawkeyes’ all-time leading rebounder.

All three went on to play professionally.

Forsyth also had a chance to coach his son, 2014 graduate Trey. His daughters Kelsey (2010 CC grad) and Riley (2012) were also active in sports, but not in ones where their father could have coached them at the high school level.

Forsyth has coached sports other than basketball, including baseball and track. He has even coached “Basquette” … an admittance that might inadvertently date the 56-year-old.

Basquette was a form of basketball played by girls in Iowa until 1993. It basically consisted of 3-on-3 games on both sides of the floor where each team employed a trio of defensive players and offensive players. Though the ball could be passed over the timeline, players were not allowed to cross over to the other side of the court from where they were assigned.

“They needed a coach to fill in for one game, so I did it,” said Forsyth, who taught and coached at CAL-Latimer and Northwood-Kensett in the early 1990s before returning to his hometown school in Charles City.

“It was an unique experience and I could say I’ve been around so long that I even coached that.”

Forsyth stepped down as the Comet boys basketball coach in 2016 after helping find and hire current head coach Ben Klapperich. He maintained his role as the school district’s activities director and helped shepherd the construction of Comet Gym and the new baseball/softball complex located on school grounds providing a much needed relocation from Sportsman’s Park, which had become annually plagued with game and practice-cancelling flooding.

“I’m proud to be part of those projects, but it wasn’t just me,” Forsyth said. “It took a lot of people to make those things happen.”

After 14 years serving as the district’s activities director, Forsyth decided to step down before the new year.

“I want to make it perfectly clear that I’m not retiring,” Forsyth said. “I’m still teaching business here.

“The role of the activities director doesn’t just include sports but other extracurricular activities as well. It requires at least 60 hours a week. I decided for the sake of my family and myself that I need a more work-life balance.”

Charles City School District superintendent Mike Fisher is serving as the school’s interim AD until the opening has been filled.

With a smaller student population now at Charles City than when Forsyth was a Comet student-athlete himself, the school has recently lost some of its outstanding homegrown talent to bigger and more celebrated programs.

“There has always been recruiting in this state,” said Forsyth, who was fortunate enough to coach some of the best basketball players in Iowa who had strong family-business ties to Charles City.

“You hate to lose talent when their families move somewhere else. But as for myself … I grew up in Charles City and I love Charles City. I feel pretty blessed being here.”