Jim Webb '80

Jim Webb '80

Viking football has been in Jim Webb’s heart and soul for more than 40 years. As a student at St. Joseph High School, Jim played football all four years. His aptitude for the sport would lead him to become a starter for two years on the varsity team. During his senior year, Jim had the opportunity to play in the East/West All-Star Game. That year the team saw incredible success, finishing 8-1-1 for the season. Jim acknowledges how deeply influential legendary coaches John Storey and Bill Gutbrod were as a young student-athlete, and he learned lessons he would carry throughout his life and unknowingly later use as a coach himself.

After graduating from St. Joseph High School, Jim went on to continue his academic and athletic career at the College of Wooster, earning a bachelor’s degree in physical education with a teacher certification in 1984. During his time at Wooster, Jim played in the OAC All-Conference his senior year and was a member of the Phi Delta Sigma fraternity.

A new college graduate, Jim visited his beloved alma mater in 1988 and spoke with legendary coach Bill Gutbrod. That visit would result in Jim being offered a coaching position. He soon moved up to coach at the varsity level the next year, and he had the honor of coaching during the 1989 season when the Viking football team won its first state championship. Over a decade later, Jim coached during the 2003 state runner-up football season.

As a coach, Jim makes certain his student-athletes understand many aspects of the game of football, but he cares even more that they have the skills to navigate the game of life. As offensive line coach, Jim works to develop the players’ abilities and strategies to ultimately bring home the win. But, Jim believes coaching is meant to do more than simply ensure a great season; he dedicates himself to ensuring the time spent with his players develops them into great people. Just as each player has a critical role on the field, he sees them as individuals with unique stories, hopes and challenges. Jim looks at and treats his players as his own sons, never forgetting them. Many remark how well Jim remembers all of his past players, easily recalling the years they played, their personalities and where life led them after VASJ. 

Jim’s love and pride for his alma mater is undeniable. It is evident in the way he coaches and mentors young student-athletes, but his dedication shines beyond the football field. Anyone who knows Jim outside of his coaching duties understands what VASJ means to him. As a business owner, Jim named his company Viking Painting, paying homage to a school that has given him so much. His own son, Joseph, currently a junior at VASJ, was named in honor of his beloved St. Joseph High School. The shorts Jim is known for wearing, even in the dead of a cold, snowy Cleveland winter, tell a story of pride. During the 1989 Viking Football season — a season that would result in St. Joseph’s first state championship — Jim wore red shorts during a game played as a blizzard dumped snow and blowing winds upon his team. The game ended in a Viking victory and a remark from coach Bill Gutbrod that Jim took quite seriously, “Those red shorts are good luck! Don’t ever take them off!” And so, Jim never did. Perhaps Jim’s greatest showing of devotion to VASJ comes with the pride he has that his children, Joey and Katie, are following in his footsteps as Vikings themselves.

Over the years, Jim has volunteered countless hours of service to VASJ, including painting, cooking team meals and supporting fundraising efforts. He has painted bleachers, walls, hallways, locker rooms, coaches’ offices and the weight room all on his own time and never expecting to be paid for his work. Known for his love of cooking, Jim prepares the meals his teams share before games, a tradition that promotes a sense of family among the players and coaching staff. Jim focuses on fundraising for the VASJ football program to ensure our young student-athletes have access to proper equipment and anything else they may need. Helmets in particular are at the forefront of Jim’s concern, taking very seriously the safety of his players. Tying in his culinary skills, Jim cooks for the team’s fundraising events, including the annual Super Bowl party and summer steak dinner.

Upon learning of his VASJ Hall of Fame induction, Jim chose to keep the good news to himself. With just a few football games left for the 2020 season, he worried the honor might distract from the efforts of the team and wanted to keep the focus on his young student-athletes. This alone is one of the greatest testaments of just how deeply Jim cares for his players and the collective effort they put forth on the football field. Jim proves football teaches more than just individual success; he shows us that in the end, we are all part of a team.