Larry Ruch

Larry Ruch captured the IHSAA state pole vault championship for Warsaw High School in 1959, signaling the start of an outstanding career in athletics — virtually all of it in Howard County.

He arrived at Kokomo High School in 1963 after graduating from Purdue University and quickly began making his mark coaching track and football. He was Kokomo’s boy’s track coach from 1969-97. During those 29 seasons, his teams captured 21 sectional, five regional and 13 NCC championships. His team was state champion in 1994 and state runner-up in 1995. Overall, he coached athletes who won seven state titles.

Ruch didn’t limit his coaching skills to track and field. In 1982, he took charge of a Wildkat football program that had managed just three winning seasons in its previous 10 years. He responded by turning the Kats into winners in eight of the next nine seasons. He retired in 1990 with a record of 62-29 (45-24 in NCC play), a winning percentage of .681 which ranks No. 1 among all KHS coaches from 1923-2006.