WAYNESBURG, Pa. (April 13) – Few if any names are more connected to Waynesburg University athletics than Rudy Marisa. For more than three decades, he led the Yellow Jackets men's basketball team to heights of success that most coaches can only dream of. In 1983, he added the title of Director of Athletics to his resume and has been a part of numerous changes to the Waynesburg sports landscape.
All told, Marisa has been with Waynesburg University for 41 years. However, when this upcoming July rolls around, the man who became synonymous with the school into which he poured so much of his heart and soul, will step down as Director of Athletics and retire.
“Rudy has been a respected member of the Waynesburg University Athletics Department for more than four decades and has done an outstanding job as both a coach and administrator,” Waynesburg University President Timothy R. Thyreen said. “He will be missed, and as a campus community, we wish nothing but the absolute best for him and his entire family as he moves on to this next chapter in his life.”
When asked to comment about the countless changes in collegiate athletics since his hiring, Marisa went into detail about how much all aspects of the college game have changed.
“Looking back 41 years ago, there was not the emphasis on recruiting in all of the institutions. Our competitors were not actively recruiting nearly as much and facilities were not as good as they are now,” Marisa said. “But, over the years, new coaches were brought in and facilities were increased in size and improved upon. In general, sports are more emphasized and refined now than they were.”
After taking over as the team's head coach in 1969, Marisa guided the Yellow Jackets to 565 wins, which ranks him 10th amongst all Division III head men's basketball coaches that served at least 10 seasons. However, his greatest achievements on the court came during Waynesburg's run as an NAIA powerhouse in the 1980's.
During the decade, Marisa-led teams sported the second-best winning percentage of all NAIA teams in the 1980's, as the Jackets finished the decade winning 82 percent of their games. The Jackets spent 15-straight seasons in the District 18 playoffs and had six consecutive berths in the NAIA tournament as district champs from 1983 to 1989. His first trip to the NAIA tournament came in 1981, giving him seven berths for his career. The standard of excellence maintained by Marisa had the Jackets winning 70 of 71 home games leading up to 1988, and a five-year record of 131-21 from 1983-1988.
The program reached its peak in the 1987-88 campaign. After losing the season opener, the Yellow Jackets won 32 games in a row on their way to the NAIA Final Four.
During the same decade that his hoops teams were thriving, Marisa also became the Waynesburg Director of Athletics. Seven years after his hiring, he helped lead the athletic programs into a new era of their existence as Waynesburg joined the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC), an NCAA Division III conference, in 1990.
Marisa continued to coach the Jackets until his retirement following the 2002-03 season. Before he hung up his coaching whistle, he was honored as a two-time PAC Coach of the Year, a five-time NAIA District 18 Coach of the Year and garnered a slew of coaching accolades from various organizations and publications.
When asked about what pushed him to the dizzying heights of his success, Marisa took none of the credit for himself. Instead, he credited the hundreds of coaches he faced over the decades for keeping him and his teams on their toes.
“I can honestly say that I was leery of every coach that we competed against and their teams,” Marisa said. “I assumed they had the ability to beat us, and maybe that's why we were able to put some wins together. I never underestimated any of them.”
While his coaching excellence is undeniable, Marisa's greater impact may have been as an athletics administrator. During his time in the position, all of Waynesburg's athletic facilities have undergone major upgrades. John F. Wiley Stadium, the home of Waynesburg's football, soccer and lacrosse teams, saw its bleachers expanded and a new artificial playing surface installed. Waynesburg's gymnasium, which was renamed the Rudy Marisa Fieldhouse in 2000, was expanded and had a second basketball court added. And, just this past year, the school built a new artificial surface baseball field. However, much like his prodigious success as a coach, Marisa refuses to take the credit for the school's expansive improvement in facilities.
“I genuinely feel that our President and his Vice Presidents are responsible for the good things that have happened from the facility standpoint. The fund raising that the President has pulled off is amazing and is the reason for [the upgrades].”
Marisa felt special acknowledgement needed to be paid to current Senior Vice President for Institutional Planning, Research and Educational Services Richard “Skip” Noftzger and Senior Vice President for Finance and Administration Roy Barnhart. Their long-time coworker praised their effort and vision in the upgrades.
One might expect that after dedicating more than half of his life to Waynesburg University, walking away would be an emotional, even painful experience for Marisa. However, after working so hard and accomplishing so much, he is ready to put all of his time, energy and focus on his family and his other passions.
“I've done a lot of traveling during the summer months, and I would like to do more of that,” Marisa said. “Some of our preliminary plans include a trip to Africa in the fall. I would also like to hunt more and spend more time with my grandchildren.”
Marisa is married to his wife of more than 50 years, Jackie. The couple has four sons: Kurt, Kent, Kameron and Kerry, and a daughter, Autumn.
While growing up in Fredricktown, Pa., basketball first became a major part of Marisa's life when he became a member of the East Bethlehem High School squad. After graduating East Bethlehem in 1952, Marisa went on to Penn State University to play hoops for the Nittany Lions. He admitted that it wasn't his talent that got him into college basketball, but it was his work ethic and determination that took him where he wanted to go.
He spent four successful years with the Nittany Lions, and after graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in physical education, he earned his first coaching job at Dunbar Township High School. That job was cut short by a two-year stay in the United State Army. After returning from the service, he continued to hone his craft as a coach in the high school ranks before coming to Waynesburg.
One aspect of his years of coaching that Marisa is most proud of is the estimated 20-plus former players who have gone on to coaching careers of their own.
With his long and decorated career at Waynesburg reaching its end, Marisa was able to look back on it with reverence and with gratitude for all of the support he received from within the institution and the surrounding communities.
“I'm truly humbled by holding the position of coach and athletic director for so many years,” Marisa said. “I'll be appreciative forever towards the administrators who treated me with respect and cooperation. I'll never forget the coaches and players who worked with me and for me, and how can I forget the local community who, for years, supported us and filled the old gymnasium back in the old days!”
