Hiram College alum Russ Swartz’ retirement as a head high school basketball coach was short-lived, as he is returning to his alma matter to resume his role as the Mogadore Wildcats boys’ basketball coach, as announced by the Mogadore Board of Education on June 24.
“I can honestly tell you I never thought this would happen,” the 1986 Hiram graduate said. “It never even crossed my mind that this would be going a year later. The only reason I decided to come back as head coach was because it was Mogadore. I would not have done it at any other place, and it is special to us. The Swartz name goes hand-in-hand with Mogadore basketball.”
As The Villager previously reported, the longtime Mogadore boys’ basketball coach stepped down after a 17-year stint at his alma matter last year, finishing as the second-winningest basketball coach behind Marty Hill, he tallied 501 career victories, including a 288-127 record at Mogadore.
Swartz not only retired as the boys’ basketball coach but also stepped down from his post as Mogadore’s Principal. He did not entirely step away from high school boys’ basketball, returning to the sideline as an assistant boys’ basketball coach at Uniontown Lake High School.
According to Swartz, he was recruited by his longtime friend Tom McBride to join his staff and Swartz helped a Blue Streaks’ squad improve from a three-win 2024-25 season to eight victories in the 2025-26 season.
Swartz said that he planned to return to Uniontown Lake for another season before he became aware that his old coaching position had once again become available, when his successor, Connor Wess, stepped down after one season.
He acknowledged that he believed that his head coaching days were behind him but could not turn down the chance to return to his alma matter for another coaching stint.
Although he spent only one season away from Mogadore, Swartz said that his one year working as an assistant coach at Uniontown Lake rejuvenated him.
“I was perfectly happy in that role as an assistant, again if it wasn’t at Mogadore, I would never have considered it. But to be back at Mogadore and get this thing moving in the right direction hopefully back to where it was or where it can be,” the 18-year coach added.
In addition to pouncing on the opportunity once again coach Mogadore boys’ basketball, Swartz said that he was also motivated to return because of the formation of the Greater Portage Athletic Conference, which will reunite Mogadore with several Portage County rivals it used to face during the old days of the Portage Trail Conference, including Garfield, Ravenna, Southeast, Waterloo, Crestwood and Rootstown.
“I am old school and an old school Portage County guy so I don’t think it should have ever broken up,” Swartz noted. “I am just excited that it is back because all of these communities now are playing each other in youth sports so if we are playing in youth sports, why are we not playing in high school sports was my thing years ago and now that it has happened.”
The new league will not begin until the 2027-28 school year, so that will give the Wildcats a chance to right their ship, coming off the heels of a 2025-26 campaign in which they went 5-16, ending the season on a 14-game losing streak.
“They know that there is work to be done, they didn’t like that, and no one likes that when it happens to anybody so I know that they are going to be willing to work and I know that they have good work ethic,” he added.
Swartz returns to a program that sill consists of several players he previously coached as underclassmen but are now the upperclassmen of the program and will also re-assemble his coaching staff of most of his old assistant coaches from his previous stint.
One notable change will be that Swartz’s younger brother, Rod, a 1985 Hiram graduate, will not be on his staff this time as he will spend the winter season championing his grandchildren from the bleachers as they are both playing varsity basketball at Norton.
Since Swartz is returning after only one year away, he is confident that the Wildcats can hit the ground running as most of his players are familiar with his style and system.
As excited as Swartz is to be back at Mogadore, he is even more appreciative to once again experience Portage County hoops again.
“Being Portage County basketball people, it has been great to me and been great to my family and that is why I am so excited to come back and just as excited for this new league to start,” he said.
