Freddy Ramos scrolled through his text messages the day after he stepped down as McCaskey’s boys basketball coach. One in particular was staring back at him.
It came from senior Jared Kumah.
“I couldn’t have asked for anybody better on and off the court,” Kumah wrote. “Whenever I needed anything, you always helped me. It was more than basketball with you.”
Ramos met Kumah when he was a sixth-grader playing at Brandon Park. The new varsity coach was making the rounds, to the YMCA and outdoor courts, to check out McCaskey’s next generation.
Some of it was about scouting talent. Mostly, Ramos wanted to stand in front of the boys for a few minutes. To introduce himself. To connect. That, in his mind, was the essence of the job.
McCaskey head boys coach Freddy Ramos during L-L basketball media day at the LNP offices in Lancaster on Sunday Nov. 24, 2024.
McCaskey is the Lancaster-Lebanon League’s coaching conundrum. It’s the best and hardest position rolled into one. Nowhere can you potentially find more talent. Nowhere are there more off-the-court obstacles to overcome.
Ramos is a city native. He knows what that red and black jersey has meant through the years. That’s why he wanted to coach at McCaskey in the first place.
“Growing up,” Ramos said, “our program was always such a presence everywhere we played. … It was respected and really fun to watch.”
McCaskey has claimed 14 L-L championships. No one else in the league has captured more than nine. Winning is expected at a school with so much tradition.
Ramos went 71-81 during his seven seasons, including back-to-back 7-15 records the past two years. McCaskey hasn’t appeared in the league playoffs since 2020.
Athletic director Teasia Pena is overhauling the sports programs. Football coach Ben Thompson and girls basketball coach Brian McCloud were the first to depart. Ramos’ resignation came on Thursday.
Pena made the following statement in a press release about the most recent coaching change: “We remain committed to providing all our student-athletes with the highest level of support and leadership and an opportunity to regularly compete for championships.”
That last word, championships, wasn’t included by accident. Pena wants McCaskey to win like the glory days. Ramos failed to meet that standard.
“The reality is one team wins a championship every year,” Ramos said in a phone interview Friday. “The wins have got to be in life. That’s a big part of the role I had here.”
Ramos took over at McCaskey under extraordinary circumstances. The former Lancaster Catholic assistant was hired in June of 2018, shortly after longtime coach Steve Powell died of cancer.
Powell is the L-L’s all-time leader in wins with 468. Replacing a legend is always difficult. Replacing him after he died was even more daunting.
Ramos couldn’t tap into Powell’s wisdom about how he prospered at McCaskey for so long. One of the first calls Ramos made was to Gloria Campbell, Powell’s widow, to gain the best link he could to those trophy-winning days.
Campbell reached out to Ramos after he resigned. Again, it was about connecting with people.
“Relationships are No. 1,” Ramos said. “It’s bigger than Xs and Os. Basketball, you use it to take you places. Where it takes you changes for every person. Relationships outlast all of that.”
McCaskey has employed three boys basketball coaches since 1972. Pete Horn manned the bench for 20 years, followed by Powell for 26. It’s time for the Red Tornado to find someone new.
One memory from Ramos’ final season sums up his tenure. As he stood outside his team’s locker room, answering questions about a hard-fought loss and the state of the program, he made a point to say goodbye to every player as he left. The coach wanted to engage them before they ventured down the hallway and into the night.
That’s who Ramos is as a coach. There isn’t a nicer one in the L-L League. There isn’t one who cares more about the big picture.
What McCaskey’s coaching change came down to, more than anything else, is how success is measured.
“If you can use basketball to build relationships,” Ramos said, “man, you’re winning.”
To Ramos, that was just as important as the standings.
JEFF REINHART | Sports Writer
Tough Tuesday
For the second consecutive season, the L-L doesn’t have a team in the Class 6A or 5A semifinals. The first rounds of those tournaments were rough for the league.
The L-L went a combined 1-6 in matchups that weren’t against a league rival Tuesday. Top-seeded Manheim Central, which had the league’s best record, and L-L runner-up Warwick both lost on their home floors.
Mid-Penn, York-Adams and even Berks rule the higher classifications. The L-L went 0-5 in Class 6A games. According to Andy Herr of LLHoops.com, this was the first time since 2011 the league didn’t win a game in the big-school bracket.
One explanation is that the school’s typical powers, McCaskey and Hempfield, are down. Ephrata, Conestoga Valley and Penn Manor all qualified in Class 6A. It’s not fair to expect those teams to compete against the district’s powerhouses. The L-L had four of the tournament’s five lowest seeds, including league champ Cedar Crest at 12. This was an uphill climb.
Two teams are headed to states: Lampeter-Strasburg and Octorara. Both lost in the Class 5A quarterfinals. Central and Cocalico will square off in the semifinals of the consolation bracket that decides the ninth PIAA qualifying team out of the district.
The smaller school divisions remain the place where the L-L is the biggest threat. Lancaster Mennonite is in the Class 3A final and Lancaster Country Day has reached the Class 1A semifinals.
