Coach Henning Steps Down as Bears Coach

Robert “Bo” Henning started coaching basketball for East Brunswick High School 25 years ago and measures success not just by wins, but by the people he came to know along the way.

“I’ve gotten so much from this,” said Henning, who announced last week that he will be stepping down as Bears coach. “I’ll miss it so much. You build such great relationships with the kids, and often times the parent, and with other coaches. That’s what I’m going to miss. I wouldn’t even rule out getting back into coaching.”

Coach Henning’s final season was perhaps his greatest. Finishing with a 26-4 record, the Bears captured the NJSIAA Championship Section 4 crown this season, the squad’s first. During his tenure, Henning’s teams won or shared the Red Division title five times and won the conference championship. But maintaining any level of success takes a lot of energy, and for Henning, that energy just wasn’t there right now.

“It just takes a special level of energy nowadays to coach basketball,” he said. “It’s such a year round thing. You’re kind of the coach, the academic advisor, out of season weights and conditioning coach…at college they have different people doing this job. It requires a lot, a lot of energy. I love coaching, and it’s just the coaching I can do it a few more years. I didn’t’ want to cheat the kids, not able to give 100 percent effort.”

Long time friend, Athletic Director Frank Noppenberger, said Coach Henning would remain working as a physical education teacher.

“For the last 25 years it has been my pleasure to have Coach Henning as our basketball coach,” said Noppenberger. “He is and always has been a consummate coach who is an ideal role model for any coach in any sport. His positive rapport and the respect his players have for him is unparalleled. High School athletics needs more Bo Hennings and I am certain many of his former players who have taken up the coaching profession have patterned their style after Bo.

“On a personal level I am happy he is staying on as a physical education teacher because not only is he an excellent teacher but he always brings levity into any situation. The entire high school basketball community will miss him but it is much better off because of him.”   

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