Austin Brooks appointed Reitz as head coach

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Austin Brooks often heard stories as a child about life on the West Side.

His grandmother and grandfather taught at Reitz High School, so they wanted to share stories they overheard in the halls that allowed him to learn about the Panthers’ culture and tradition.

Those anecdotes did not seem so important at the time. But more than two decades later, they broke into one of the most important decisions of his career.

Brooks was announced as the Reitz boys basketball head coach under Monday’s Evansville Vanderburgh School Corp. board meeting. He is the program’s first new leader in 30 years.

“It was almost like I knew about Reitz before I really knew about Reitz,” Brooks said. “As a coach, you are always looking for advancement. When you have a school with such a rich tradition as this, it’s just not something you can miss.”