Jeff Austin steps down as coach of Marine City girls basketball

MARINE CITY — Rarely seen occupying the coach's seat, Jeff Austin preferred to crouch in the coach's box.

Now, he's stepping away from both.

Austin resigned as coach of the Marine City girls basketball team after 10 seasons on Tuesday. Tim Golm, who recently led the junior varsity squad, will take over the program.

"I'm still going to be involved, but I won't be on the sideline," Austin told the Times Herald. "To run a program at the caliber that we've run and have the success that we've been able to have, it's seven days a week (of work). And I have a place in the (Upper Peninsula) that I don't get to because (coaching) basketball doesn't allow that. I'm an outdoorsman, so November, December is big for me, as far as hunting — and I want to be able to do that.

"I truly believe in doing everything at the highest caliber. It's all attention on (the task at hand). And if I'm going to pursue my other passions, at this point, I'm not going to be able to (put in the time required to coach). And to me, that's not fair to the program or to the girls."

The Mariners went 147-59 under Austin's watch, which included four MAC Gold titles (2017, 2020, 2023-24) and two district championships (2017, 2020). They never had a losing season during his tenure.

He first joined the program as an assistant in 2009, before taking over as coach ahead of the 2014-15 season.

"The success that we've been able to have all goes back to my mentor and really good friend, Bill Westerhof," said Austin, who graduated from Marine City in 1993. "He coached me as a freshman and as a sophomore (on the boys basketball team). When I decided to go full tilt into (coaching) the girls, he was the first I reached out to and agreed to come on board (my staff). We accomplished a lot together."

Added Austin: "Al Warwick has meant a lot to our success also. He was coaching there as a varsity assistant when I took over and I asked him to stay on. He's a kid's coach. The kids have always loved him from day one. He's got tremendous experience and ideas and has brought a lot (to the program)."

Austin's own career began three decades ago. After playing one season with the St. Clair County Community College men's basketball team, he left to pursue coaching.

"I got my first opportunity in 1994 to be part of the Marine City football program (as an assistant)," Austin said. "What an opportunity, right? They were starting to take off and I got groomed by Bob Staskiewicz, Tony Scarcelli, Ron Glodich and the rest of the staff."

That same year, he joined the boys basketball program in a similar roll, continuing in both those positions for a decade.

Austin eventually took some time off to start a family and had three daughters (Kirstyn, Karyssa and Khloe), all of which would later play for him. One of his favorite memories occurred during Karyssa's senior season.

"In 2017, we were able to win the league title and then face Marysville in the district final," Jeff Austin said. "As everybody knows, for a lot of years, it came down to Marysville and Marine City for the district and league title.

"That year, we were able to come out on top in the district final — and it was a relief. Because that was one of our goals. It was part of changing the culture and changing what we were going to do at Marine City from there on out."

The veteran coach will still be a part of that culture, serving as a consultant to the program.

"What I'm most proud of (during my tenure) is the fact that we've always showed up on the court and played hard," Jeff Austin said. "We didn't always come out on top, but we left everything on the court every single game. I've heard, from so many people and coaches over the years, that you know what you're getting when you play MC — tough-nosed, man-to-man defense and they're going to be there to play. And that's what it's all about."

Contact Brenden Welper at bwelper@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrendenWelper.

This article originally appeared on Port Huron Times Herald: Jeff Austin steps down as coach of Marine City girls basketball