Former Indian Creek quarterback Casey Gillin was introduced Tuesday night as the new head football coach at his alma mater.
Ryan O’Leary | Daily Journal
The 12th head coach in the history of Indian Creek football won’t be cornered about his credentials.
Armed with an abundance of Braves career and single-season passing records, a plan of attack and a surname synonymous with gridiron success, Casey Gillin is ready to get to work.
On Tuesday, the 37-year-old Gillin, a Nineveh resident and son of former Braves coach Mike Gillin, was approved during a school board meeting to preside over the Braves’ program moving forward.
Casey Gillin starts at Indian Creek as strength coach on Jan. 3.
Ranked 14th in career passing yardage among Indiana high school players with a total of 8,806, the younger Gillin wouldn’t have been blamed had he chose to steer clear of returning to his alma mater. His father, who compiled a 140-45 record there in his 16 seasons (2001-16), has almost as many victories as the school’s other 10 previous coaches combined (162).
The younger Gillin steps into shadows cast by not one legendary tenure, but two.
“I want to go back because the first time my family went there, the school and community welcomed us with open arms,” said Gillin, a 2003 Indian Creek graduate, referring to when his father left his alma mater (Decatur Central) after a 16-year run to coach the Braves. “I feel I owe it to the community to be there, but also, I want to be there.
“I’ve got buddies there, and people who played football for my dad. It’s just fun to be back as a Brave.”
The Indian Creek job is Gillin’s first job as a head coach after previously serving as an assistant both at the high school and collegiate levels.
A standout signal-caller in his old man’s pass-happy offensive attack, Gillin started his college football career at Ball State before transferring to the University of Indianapolis. In only three seasons (2005-07), he managed to place his name in the Greyhounds’ record book, where he remains fifth in career pass attempts (861), completions (521) and yards (6,542).
Gillin began his coaching career working with his dad at Indian Creek in 2008 before becoming a graduate assistant at UIndy and eventually working his way up to quarterbacks coach. From 2017-19, he served as the Greyhounds’ offensive coordinator, a role he’s filled for Mike Gillin’s Mooresville squads the past two years.
The Pioneers were third in the state in scoring this past season at 46.2 points per game. In 2020, Casey Gillin’s first season, Mooresville’s norm was 38.9 while advancing all the way to the Class 4A semistate for the first time in 31 years.
The new Indian Creek coach plans to bring the pass-oriented run-and-shoot attack that he and others affectionately call “Gillin Ball” back to all levels of the Braves’ program — with, he says, some new wrinkles added.
Like his father has done throughout his Hall of Fame career, Casey Gillin plans to start by placing a premium on both the strength and technique of those working in the trenches.
“The linemen … those are my favorite guys on the field. Defense and offensive linemen win games,” Gillin said. “With my coaches, I want to make sure we have Indian Creek guys. We need coaches who are all-in with our program. If we’re all on the same page, we’re going to be moving the train pretty fast.”
Indian Creek is 9-11 over the past two seasons; the Braves’ previous coach, Steve Spinks, resigned following a 54-20 loss at Brownstown Central in Week 7. Offensive coordinator Dan Rector served as acting head coach for the team’s final four games of the 2021 season.
Having a Gillin in charge no doubt conjures up memories of some of the program’s finest moments — the only three sectional championships in the history of Indian Creek football and the 2010 Braves squad marching all the way to a Class 3A semistate.
Casey Gillin is confident such exciting times can again exist.
“One of the most important things I’ve learned from my dad is how to handle people,” he said. “I’ve heard all the positive stories and seen his love for his players and the community. How he treats people is something that’s important to me.
“The most important thing for the community to know is that their kids are going to get coached. With the staff I bring in, when we walk out on that field, we are going to outwork everyone we play. Work wins, baby.”
