Morton College men’s basketball coach Aaron Rolle has established a high standard of excellence in his first two seasons at 38th Street and Central Avenue in Cicero.
The Panthers won back-to-back conference championships and in 2019, returned to the NJCAA Division II national tournament for the first time in 10 years. Rolle’s 41 wins in his first two years is also the most by any men’s basketball coach in Morton College program history. His record is 41-27 overall and 23-5 in Skyway competition.
Morton College was ranked in the top 10 nationally in three different categories in the 2019 season – made three-pointers (4th), free-throw percentage (7th) and defensive scoring average (9th).
The Panthers also produced consecutive 20-win seasons for the first time since running off a program-record three straight 20-win campaigns from 2009 to 2011. Morton College also was the only Skyway program to win 100 games in men’s basketball this decade.
Morton College also has made consecutive appearances in the Region IV title games in Rolle’s two seasons. The Panthers took perennial NJCAA power South Suburban to the wire in 2018 before knocking off Bryant & Stratton the following year.
He has coached a 1,000-point scorer (Deonte McReynolds) and a NJCAA Division II All-American (Mason Vires).
McReynolds (Peru State), Vires (Culver-Stockton), Ricardo Whitehead (Illinois Tech), Joffery Brown (Lewis), Larenzo Moore (Holy Cross) and Edward Clary (Allen) are among the six players Rolle has coached at Morton College who have continued to play at four-year schools.
Team manager Matt Shonder will carry on at St. Francis in the same capacity.
Rolle places a great deal of emphasis on development.
“It’s all about development,” said Rolle, who worked his way up from volunteer to associate head coach during his six years at NAIA Roosevelt University in Chicago, “whether it’s skill development or personal development. On the court, we want to make you better as a player. Off the court, we want to help you transition to a four-year school. That’s what the guys at Morton College make the investment in.”
Morton College is Rolle’s first head coaching position, but it’s been something he’s working for since the age of 17 when he started coaching youth teams in his hometown of Sterling, Illinois.
“I started doing as an after-school job and just developed a passion for it,” Rolle said. “Personally, I like working with and developing players so I’ve always wanted to work at the junior college level. I have a solid understanding of what it takes to be successful on and off the court.”
“We couldn’t be more excited to have Aaron with us,” said Billy Jacklin, athletic director at Morton College. “Aaron is a high character individual who leads by example. He has been a terrific addition to Morton College and we look forward to him being here for many years.”
In Rolle’s profile on the Roosevelt athletic web page, Lakers’ head coach Joe Griffin describes Rolle as a “natural teacher and a great role model. Aaron’s strongest attributes are in his ability to relate to our players, recruits and all stakeholders in our program.”
Former players also sing Rolle’s praises. Roosevelt 1,000-point club member Tyree York credited Rolle in a March 2016 Medill News Service on-line article for helping him develop the most because they grew together on the team.
In addition to Roosevelt, Rolle has worked a number of camps and clinics, including the Reebok Headliner and Under Armour All-American camps.
Rolle is a graduate of DePaul University with a degree in sociology.
“Our goals and expectations for the year are simple,” Rolle said. “We want to continue to improve each day. We expect that all of our guys give their all on and off the court.
“We want to develop a winning mentality and have a clear understanding of what we need to do to win. We believe that if this happens we will put ourselves in a position to contend for a conference title.”
As usual, the Panthers play a challenging non-conference schedule.
“We have a very competitive schedule.” Rolle said. “We will not take anyone lightly. We will respect and prepare for all of our opponents all the same.”
Morton College Accolades
Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Coach of the Year: 2019
Region IV Coach of the Year: 2019
District IV Coach of the Year: 2019
Skyway Athletic Conference Coach of the Year: 2018 & 2019
Skyway Athletic Conference Newcomer Coach of the Year: 2018
Skyway Athletic Conference Men’s Sports Coach of the Year: 2019
Morton College Coach of the Year: 2018
