April 12, 2025
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Russ Witte announces retirement as Seneca boys basketball coach

Fighting Irish coach posted 284 wins at Seneca

By J.T. Pedelty
Seneca head boys basketball coach Russ Witte talks to his team during a timeout while playing Streator on Tuesday, Dec. 21, 2023 at the United Center in Chicago.

Seneca head boys basketball coach Russ Witte talks to his team during a timeout while playing Streator at the United Center in Chicago during the 2023-24 season. (Scott Anderson)

SENECA – The storied Seneca boys basketball program has had only two head coaches stretching back into the early 1980s.

Soon, there will be a third.

Russ Witte, who took over the Fighting Irish program in 2009 and led Seneca to a 284-188 record and three Class 2A regional championships over 16 seasons, announced to his players Wednesday he will be retiring as a basketball coach at the school. He does plan to stay on as a teacher.

While he would not rule out a possible return to coaching the game he loves somewhere down the line, Witte for now intends to spend more time with his family.

“If I feel the bug come back, yeah, it’s very much so a possibility,” Witte said. “If I don’t feel the bug and 27 years was plenty and it’s ‘I’m signing off,’ I’ll be happy as a clam watching my kids grow up to young adults.”

Seneca on Thursday began advertising the coaching vacancy.

A full story on Witte’s retirement from coaching will appear online Monday at shawlocal.com/illinois-valley and in print in our Tuesday edition.

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