Dick Kortokrax
Birthdate: August 9, 1933
Birthplace: Ottoville, Ohio
High School: Ottoville (1951)
College: Anderson (Indiana) University (1955), Ball State (1961)
Year Inducted: 2012
Dick Kortokrax borrowed a page out of Old Man River’s playbook many years ago. He enjoyed coaching so much that he “just kept rolling along.” In 2011, when he was selected for the Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame’s 2012 class, he was 77 years old and had been coaching high school basketball players for 53 years. With an 822-323 record, he was the winningest boys varsity coach in Ohio. A native of Ottoville, Kortokrax has been head coach at Kalida High School since 1974. Prior to that he spent two years (1957-59) at Fort Jennings High School and 14 seasons (1959-1974) at Ottoville, his alma mater. His coaching style worked at every stop. His records were 26-18 at Fort Jennings and 199-82 at Ottoville. The teams at Kalida through 2010-11 have been even more successful, winning 597 and losing 223 for a .728 winning percentage. The highlight of his career came in 1980-81 when the Kalida Wildcats, with two of his sons on the squad and a third serving as a volunteer coach, finished 27-1 and won the state Class A championship.
Watch Dick Kortokrax’s enshrinement speech:
