'Just fantastic with people.' Tom O'Brien had a lifelong connection with Cathedral

Tom O’Brien was a college basketball assistant at Bradley in 1967 when the opportunity arose to come back to coach at Cathedral, his alma mater.

O’Brien would leave a couple different times as coach, but never really did give up his connection to the school where he graduated from in 1949. O’Brien died on Aug. 17 at age 95.

“Tom had such a history with Cathedral, graduating from there and all the changes the school went through in good times and bad times, Tom was always part of it,” said Steve Hodgson, who coached with O’Brien and then later succeeded him. “It goes even beyond that. There are so many families in the Catholic and Eastside community and people that I’ve heard from in the last week through Tom’s passing that he touched.”

O’Brien not only coached football, basketball and baseball at Cathedral, he later returned as a substitute and earned the nickname “Super Sub.”

“Tom left a profound impact on Cathedral, both as a student and when he returned as an educator and coach,” Cathedral shared on its social media accounts. “‘Coach OB’ coached football, basketball and baseball at Cathedral, leaving a lasting legacy on thousands of Cathedral students. During the final years of his tenure at Cathedral, he was affectionately known as ‘Super Sub,’ and students were always thrilled to see him walk through the classroom door.”

O’Brien, who played football at Butler for legendary coach Tony Hinkle, coached on the staff at Evansville College for Arad McCutchan, helping the Aces to a perfect season in 1964-65. That team was led by Larry Humes and Jerry Sloan. But after coaching at Evansville and Bradley, O’Brien was drawn home with the opportunity to coach basketball at Cathedral.

After leading Cathedral to a 71-27 record over a four-year period, including the program’s first sectional championship in 1971, O’Brien also served as the Marion County Clerk from 1975-79 before he was rehired as Cathedral’s coach in 1979.

“He was a really, really good coach,” said Brad Lennon, who was hired as O’Brien’s freshman team coach in 1980 and coached on his staff the next six seasons. “He wasn’t necessarily a master technician but he was a players’ coach. He had a heart of gold and would do anything for anybody – just fantastic with people.”

Steve Hodgson remembered one afternoon when O’Brien was feeling sick and was not going to be able to make it to a game at Center Grove. He spent 45 minutes talking on the phone to Hodgson, his assistant at Cathedral, about the game plan for the night. Just before the tipoff, O’Brien showed up at the game, saying he was “feeling better and coming to support the kids.”

“I turned to Brad and said the over/under on him sitting on this bench is halftime,” Hodgson said with a laugh. “I missed it by a quarter. If he was there, he was going to coach. I’d probably be the same way.”

O’Brien’s best team was the 1981-82 group led by senior Ken Barlow and junior Scott Hicks, both of whom would go on to Notre Dame; Shelton Smith (Wisconsin) and Carl Daniels (Rice). Cathedral was 27-2 going into the Final Four but ran into a buzzsaw in Scott Skiles and Plymouth, falling 62-59 in the afternoon game. Plymouth would beat Gary Roosevelt 75-74 in double overtime for the state championship that night.

“It was a tremendous experience for the kids to play in a packed Market Square Arena,” Hodgson said. “We were probably the proverbial favorites. I remember in the locker room after the game, Tom talked to the kids about how it was one day in their lives. He told them they had an incredible season and were able to go to the Final Four ... all the great things they accomplished. Even though he was heartbroken and we all were, I appreciated those comments.”

O’Brien stepped down in 1984. He coached nine seasons total at Cathedral, compiling a 164-60 record. He would go on to coach at Blackford in 1986 after two years working in the Marion County Sheriff’s Department. O’Brien would later be a Sagamore of the Wabash recipient and an inaugural member of the Cathedral Circle of Excellence. On his 80th birthday, Mayor Greg Ballard declared it “Tom O’Brien Day” in Indianapolis.

“I might not have gotten into coaching if it wasn’t for OB,” Lennon said. “He was really good about letting you have your two cents as an assistant coach. Just a great guy with a great sense of humor. I owe him a lot.”

O’Brien is proceeded in death by his wife, Marilyn O’Brien, his parents, five brothers James, Robert, Jack, Michael, Bernard and sisters Mary O’Brien and Patricia Norton. He is survived by his daughters, Dorothy (Pete) Miller, Kathleen Allgood and sister Barbara (Joseph) Minatel as well as many nieces and nephews.

Visitation will be held on Wednesday from 4-8 p.m. at Feeney-Hornak Keystone Mortuary, 2126 E. 71st Street. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Thursday at 11 a.m. at St. Lawrence Catholic Church 6944 E. 46th Street, with burial to follow in Westridge Park Cemetery.

Memorial contributions go to Cathedral Tuition Assistance Fund, 5225 E. 56th St., Indianapolis, IN 46226.

Call Star reporter Kyle Neddenriep at (317) 444-6649.Get IndyStar's high school coverage sent directly to your inbox with the High School Sports newsletter. 

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: 'Just fantastic with people.' Tom O'Brien had a lifelong connection with Cathedral