Jerry Marks steps down as coach
FRANKLIN TWP. — After 11 years as Southern Columbia’s wrestling coach, Jerry Marks said Saturday he has decided it’s time to move on and spend more time with his family.
“My parents are up there in age and I want to make sure they are safe and fine,” Marks said. “My daughter [Morgan] is graduating [high school] and I wanted to be around my family more.”
Morgan, like brother Blake, will attend Bloomsburg University this fall where she is expected to play soccer for the Huskies. In fact, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Jerry wrestled and played football for the Huskies, and his wife, Jennifer, also graduated from BU.
“I want to make it to as many games of hers as I can. I don’t want to miss out on anything with the family,” he said. “I’ve missed out on a lot of things in my life, such as Christmas with the family, and I just want to be around more.”
Marks, who compiled a 171-84 record during his tenure, also didn’t want to leave the team if it was in a state of disarray or in need of rebuilding. Instead, next year’s coaching staff gets to work with state qualifiers Patrick Edmondson, Kole Biscoe, Gavin Garcia and Wesley Barnes.
“The team that is coming back is a very good team. I always said I wasn’t going to leave when the well was empty. I’m leaving with a lot of talent here,” Marks said. “We’ve done some tremendous things as a group, and it’s time for someone else to reap the benefits.”
Not a bad state of mind for a coach who began his tenure with a wrestling program in need of a face-lift.
Coming a long way
When Marks took over the program for the 2008-2009 season, he wanted more athletes to experience the same success he had when wrestling for the Tigers in the late 1980s. Marks medaled in three consecutive state tournaments, placing fourth in 1986 as a sophomore before winning back-to-back state titles in 1987 and 1988.
But as Marks returned to coach at his alma mater, it wasn’t uncommon to see the Tigers come up short, both in matches and with depth.
“We always talked about just getting one state qualifier. Then it was about getting a state place winner,” Marks said. “The big turnaround [for the program] came when we sent Todd Lane, Kent Lane and Blake Marks to states and all three were in the final.”
That moment occurred in 2014, and he and the program haven’t looked back. Since then, the Tigers haven’t finished lower than ninth in the team standings at the individual tournament. In addition, the team also had 38 wrestlers qualify for the state tournament, with 24 finding a spot on the podium. Marks also coached three wrestlers — Kent Lane (2015), Jaret Lane (’17 and ’18) and Gaige Garcia (’19 and ’20) — to five state titles.
The peak of all that success occurred in 2019 when the Tigers had six wrestlers medal and won the Class 2A team title at the individual tournament —weeks after finishing second in the team tournament — for the first time in 35 years.
“It was an awesome experience for my coaching staff and team,” Marks said.
The program’s turnaround didn’t come overnight, and Marks is quick to credit that all of it couldn’t have been done without the support he’s gotten over the years from the school district, administrators and community.
However, he knows in his heart of hearts, it’s time to put his attention elsewhere.
“I’ve coached with some hall of fame coaches like George Curry, Jim Roth and Ernie Yates,” he said. “They always said ‘you would know when the time comes.’... For me, this decision is all about family.”
Link to story: https://www.pressenterpriseonline.com/daily/051020/page/13/story/jerry-marks-steps-down-as-coach
