GALESBURG - On Thursday night the CUSD #205 board chose Chad Thompson to be the new Silver Streak varsity boys basketball coach. Thompson is the 30th Silver Streak coach in history. He is the first GHS alumni player to coach the Silver Streaks since Barry Swanson in 1996.
Thompson described it as a "thrill of a lifetime" to be back in his hometown as the head coach of the Silver Streaks.
"The tradition of Galesburg basketball is just great," said Thompson. "That program is in the top 10 in wins in the state of Illinois. A regional championship has eluded us the last couple of years and that is obviously something that we want to get back to in the years to come."
Thompson continued, "Overall, the thrill is the hometown. Being around the kids here in Galesburg and helping lead them beyond basketball. What's going to happen when the ball stops bouncing? Unless you are going to the NBA, that ball is going to stop bouncing. We want to set them up to be great young men in our society."
Locally, several people remember the 6-foot-6 Thompson as a 2011 graduate of GHS. He was all-state his senior year at GHS on a team that finished 25-7 and he scored close to 900 points in his career for the Silver Streaks.
Thompson went on to play one year at Carl Sandburg College as an all-region player and all-academic player, and then he closed out his college career as a three-year letterwinner at Monmouth College. Beyond that, he threw down several memorable dunks in his hoops career. Thompson wanted to thank Coach Mike Reynolds for mentoring him as a young adult and his grandpa (Harley Knosher) for coaching him when he was little. "I have to give a lot of credit to my mom and my little brother (Eric) who has sat through way too much basketball talk over his life, but he loves it. A huge thank you, too, to the Galesburg administration and the hiring committee and the school board for believing in me and giving me this great opportunity to lead my hometown."
Thompson gained valuable experience this past season at DeKalb as a varsity assistant under former Streaks coach Mike Reynolds. Thompson worked with the guards and forwards, and helped with the game planning. The end result was an 18-1 overall record for the Barbs and a 10-0 record in the DuPage Valley Conference.
"We were 18-1 and he (Thompson) was a big part of it," said Reynolds. "It's a proud day for me and I'm excited to see him continue the tradition of Galesburg basketball. It is a perfect match with him and the Streaks.He has been groomed for this position. He said he really likes DeKalb, but he loves Galesburg and really wants to see them do well."
Galesburg High School Eric Matthews also confirmed the hiring of Thompson as the Streaks new varsity boys basketball coach.
Be sure to see the follow-up article about Thompson from The Burg sports writer John Ring.
*** A Few Tidbits about Thompson
Thompson is the grandson of legendary Knox College Coach Harley Knosher.
Thompson played basketball for Monmouth College during the 2014 season.
Thompson’s season high was 14 points against Lake Forest January of 2015.