Dealing with ups and downs on the football field and in the classroom is common for George Gilbert.
When you have been teaching and working with young men and women for more than four decades, you are bound to encounter some adversity every now and then.
However, the longtime coach and educator is now engaged in the fight for his life.
“This past spring, I went into remission for colon cancer, and then a month ago, I got the news that the cancer was back and very aggressive,” explained Gilbert. “Please understand I am not interested in drama or people feeling sorry for me. I do not or ever would want people to pity this situation that I am currently in. God has a plan for all of us and death is as much a part of the life cycle as birth.”
Having already determined he was going to hang up his whistle at the end of the 2022 campaign, Gilbert was now forced to go into early retirement.
“On Thursday, July 14, which was one day after my 67th birthday, I announced to the team that I would no longer be able to coach, ending my coaching career at Clinton Central after 22 seasons,” Gilbert recalled. “However, I did prepare for this possibility. I had a great recruiting off-season hiring outstanding coaches to add to an experienced quality staff and sought out a man that had coached with me in the late 1980s to be ready if called upon. (New Clinton Central) Coach Tracy Rosa came back into the program as if he never left and I feel confident that the leadership is there to build a quality program back to what we once had.”
During his 42-year career, which included stops at Wayne Trace (Ohio), Pioneer, Clinton Central (twice), Tri-Central, and Taylor, he compiled a 231-196-4 record.
Elected to the Indiana Football Hall of Fame in 2016, Gilbert’s finest hour came in 2013 when he guided Tri-Central to the Class 1A state championship.
This was quite an accomplishment, considering the Trojans were 0-10 in 2009, which was his first season at the controls.
“The Tri-Central years were…
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