Richard H. Kerschbaum, 75, Successful High School Football Coach

He was born April 24, 1948 in Washington D.C. to the late Matthias and Mary (nee Nuttycombe) Kerschbaum. He was a 1965 graduate of Surrattsville High School where he was the captain of the football team in his Senior year.

After graduation, he attended Capital University where he started four years on the football team as a center and linebacker. He was selected captain of the team in 1968, his sr. year where he earned All Ohio Conference and All Lutheran as a center.

Upon graduation he began a 35-year coaching career which began at Northland H.S. in Columbus (69-72) and continued through Reynoldsburg (72-79), Warren Harding (75-77), North Ridgeville (78-79), Lakewood (80-85), Mentor (85-94) Xenia (94-97), and Elyria (98-2004). He earned seven Conference Coach of the Year awards, was twice named Northeast Ohio Division 1 Coach of the Year, and was chosen as the 1985 Head coach of the Ohio North All-Star Team, and the 1993 Ohio Big 33 Team. While at North Ridgeville, Dick led the Rangers to their first undefeated/untied season. His 1983 Lakewood Team was the first to defeat arch-rival St. Edward. In 1992 he led Mentor High School to the school�s first OHSAA Football Tournament victory over Berea. He was inducted into the Lorain County Football Coaches Hall of Fame in 2004 and the Ohio High School Football Coaches Hall of Fame in 2018.

In addition, Dick was awarded the Hugo Wentzel Award of Merit for distinguished service to high school athletics from Capital University in 2000. He received the Lorain County Athletic Administrators Athletic Director of the Year award in 2019 and was inducted in the OIAAA/NEOIAAA Athletic Directors Hall of Fame in 2022. After retiring from teaching and coaching at Elyria High School in 2004, Dick accepted the Athletic Director position at Brookside High School in Sheffield, OH. While at Brookside, he developed the Brookside Athletic Hall of Fame banquet into an annual affair to honor outstanding coaches, athletes, and teams from the school. He was instrumental in the upgrading of Brookside�s Dick Sevits Stadium, the baseball field, the building of an all-weather track facility, and the addition of a weight room off the old high school building. He oversaw the Athletic Department as Brookside High School transitioned from the old high school to the new building which houses both the high school and middle school.

Dick served on the Board of Directors of the OHSFCA in several capacities, including President in 1994. He also served as Secretary from 1996 to his death. He served on numerous committees for the OHSAA including the OHSAA Committee to set Sports Medicine Guidelines, The Committee on Out-of-Season Coaching guidelines, and the Blue Ribbon Committee to study the length of seasons. He served as Manager for OHSAA Division I Football Double header at first Energy Stadium in 2005 and 2006. He was elected to the NEDAB in 2019 and the OHSAA Board of Directors the same year.

He is survived by his wife of 52 years, Holly Kerschbaum (nee Hider), children John (Jen) Kerschbaum, Dr. Stephanie Kerschbaum (Jamie Sutherland), Lt. Colonel Andrew (Mandy) Kerschbaum, Lt. Colonel Mike (Mai) Kerschbaum, and Gregory (Maureen) Kerschbaum. Surviving grandchildren are Gabriel, MaClain, and Clayton Kerschbaum, Rosemary and Rhys Sutherland, Tyler, Luke, and Madison Kerschbaum, Tatsuki and Yushin Kerschbaum, Thomas, Amelia, and Grace Kerschbaum. He is also survived by his brother Matt (Bonnie) Kerschbaum, and sister Ann (Wayne) Mountjoy.

He was preceded in death by his parents Matthias and Mary Kerschbaum and grandson Alexander Kerschbaum.

Family will receive friends on Tuesday, December 5th, 2023 from 3pm to 7pm at Bogner Family Funeral Home 36625 Center Ridge Rd. North Ridgeville, OH 44039. There will be a Funeral Service, on Wednesday, beginning at 10am, at Emmanuel Lutheran Church 360 Princeton Ave, Elyria, OH 44035. Pastor Tim Scholl will officiate. Burial will follow at Lake View Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to Ohio High School Football Coaches Association.

For further information or to send an online condolence, please visit www.bognerfamilyfuneralhome.com.