The Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2025 includes a Springfield South High School coach and athletic director who left a lasting impact on the District, Paul ‘Bucky’ Walters.
In 1953, Coach Walters left his coaching and teaching job at Columbus East High School, where his team won the 1951 OHSAA Basketball State Championship, for a coaching career at Springfield High School.
In 1960, Springfield High School split into two schools, Springfield North and Springfield South. Walters coached at Springfield South for three additional years, before transitioning to Athletic Director for the next 20 years. While at Springfield, Walters was active in the formation of the Western Ohio League and assisted in the writing of the league handbook. He served as chairman of the Western Ohio League and was a former president of the Greater Ohio League.
Walters' overall record as a head basketball coach was 295-115 in 16 years (five years at Columbus East and 11 years at Springfield). To honor Coach Walters’ legacy, one of the gyms at the former Springfield South High School was named after him, and he was also inducted into the Springfield High School Hall of Fame in 1998.
Unfortunately, Walters died at age 66 in 1989, just three years after his retirement from Springfield South. Throughout his career, however, he influenced not only hundreds of student-athletes, but also several coaches who went on to outstanding careers.
Coach Walters will be inducted posthumously into the Ohio Basketball Hall of Fame on April 12 in Columbus.