The 2008 NCAA basketball championship went pretty much as expected. Kansas won it all and there were the usual teams at the top. Stephen Curry of Davidson gave fans hope for the underdogs in 2009. Great players are found in unusual places sometimes. It’s hard to believe that the number one pick in the NBA draft back in 1987 came out of Navy. That’s Navy, as in the United States Naval Academy, not exactly a bastion of great hoops stars. But who would argue that David Robinson went on to become one of the greatest centers of all time?
This year, another service academy, the Coast Guard, has produced an outstanding basketball player in former Columbus East standout, Jeff Prebeck. Prebeck finished his college career in March as the all time leading scorer for the USCGA with 1614 points. He is also second in rebounds with 1114, a mere twenty behind 1996 graduate, Mark Harris. An even more astounding stat is his 109 career starts. Prebeck started every game during his four year tenure. He is the only player in Coast Guard history to score more than 1500 points, and grab more than 1000 rebounds.
But there is virtually no chance of Prebeck carrying his basketball career to the NBA, or any other league, even though his credentials would at least warrant a look. Prebeck is off to a career overseeing the nation’s waterways. Talking to him, one gets the impression that basketball falls somewhere near water skiing as a priority in his life. Indeed, after a great freshmen year at Columbus East, Prebeck didn’t even come out for the team his sophomore year. Family issues, combined with an increased commitment to the team by coach Victor Bush, put Prebeck on the sidelines. “It was a learning experience as far as basketball goes,” says Jeff. “I wanted to make sure I could stay committed, every practice, every game, every season.”
And Prebeck is nothing, if not committed. Following a conference with Bush after the 2000-2001 season, Prebeck came back to the team for his junior year, and helped lead the O’s to a 17-5 campaign, their first winning season in six years. His senior year, under new head coach Steve Brunes, the Olympians matched their 17-5 record, and picked up their first Hoosier Hills Conference championship since 1979. In 2002-2003, Prebeck led the team with 417 points and 232 rebounds. Those single season marks put him at fourth and eighth, respectively in the East record book.
His Coast Guard teams also set some new standards. An overtime loss to Ursinus is all that prevented Prebeck’s team from going to the Division III Final Four. Their 24-7 record was the most in school history. Given all of that, you would think that basketball would dominate the life of this 6’6” hoopster. Think again.
He would rather talk about life. As in Robinson’s case, any pro career would have to wait because of his commitment to the United States. But Jeff is uninterested, preferring to talk about his new assignment in Louisville. When asked what the Coast Guard is doing in Louisville, he talks about the protection that is needed for areas like the Ohio River and its tributaries. Part of his training for this involved sailing the high seas on a tall three masted ship. In the summer of 2007, Jeff and his mates crossed the Atlantic from Newfoundland to Germany and Scotland. “Does he enjoy sailing?” he is asked. “I just picked it up my last two years of high school,” he says. “I don’t even like it anymore.”
If anything defines Jeff Prebeck, it would be his Christian faith, one well established by his family. “I don’t know how I would have made it without God,” he says. His mother, Beth, takes it even further by saying, “Jeff is where he is because of the Lord.” At a time where many athletes choose a school close to home so they can be supported by family and friends, Prebeck has rarely played west of the Appalachians. You get the notion that God is number one in his life. Now comes the next chapter, void of any basketball, other than the occasional pickup game at the local “Y”. His records will stand, but he is Jeff Prebeck, United States Coast Guard, and like the namesake of his hometown, who knows what is beyond the horizon.
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