West Liberty University Athletics

    A four-year starter and prolific scorer, Emil Rubcich helped lead the West Liberty State College basketball program to its first national tournament appearance before tipping off a storied high school coaching and teaching career. The West Virginia High School Player of the Year as a senior at Benwood Union High School, Rubcich was a four-year starter on the hilltop who earned multiple All-WVIAC and WVIAC All-Tournament honors for his hardwood exploits. He was honored in 1974 with a berth on the WVIAC's 50th Anniversary All-Time All-Conference basketball team.
    Rubcich was the leading scorer on the Hilltoppers' 1952 NAIA Tournament squad and was No. 2 on the school's career scoring list with 1,357 points when he graduated in 1953. Following a stint in the U.S. Army, Rubcich earned his master's degree from WVU in 1958 and began his coaching and teaching career at tiny Dillonvale (Ohio) High School. After three years coaching Dillonvale's baseball and basketball teams, Rubcich moved to Marion, Ohio. He coached one season at now-defunct LaRue High School before taking the reins of the football and baseball programs at Marion Elgin High School.
    Rubcich led Elgin to a 53-26-2 record in football over the next nine seasons with a pair of NCC titles and also won the 1966 NCC baseball crown with a 13-1 record. He stepped away from coaching in 1970 to take the job of athletic director at Elgin and was named principal in 1979, serving in that position until his retirement in 1988.