A former member of the Ohio State men’s basketball coaching staff returned to the court for his second tour of duty with the Buckeyes this season.

Assistant coach Rick Boyages in his fourth season with the Buckeyes, was on the OSU staff from 1998-2000 before leaving to take the head coach position at William & Mary.

Boyages was born in Wakefield, Mass. and graduated from Bowdoin College in 1985. At Bowdoin College, Boyages was an All-New England basketball honoree. Boyages described himself as “a little pest who was quick but small.” He always had a passion for basketball and that’s why he continued a career in the field.

Boyages was named the head basketball coach at Bates College when he was 24 years old. At that time, he was the youngest collegiate head coach.

“It was a fabulous experience, a great training ground,” Boyages said.

At Bates, Boyages had to do everything basketball related and some things not. He coached the team, recruited, scouted, drove the van, washed the uniforms and taught academic classes. He was an assistant soccer coach and coach of women’s tennis and men’s golf teams for a year.

“It was a small school environment where you have to wear many hats,” Boyages said.

In 1991 OSU coach Jim O’Brien hired Boyages as an assistant coach at Boston College. At Boston College, Boyages helped to turn the Eagles program around.

In 1998, Boyages followed O’Brien to OSU as an assistant coach. He was part of an amazing turn around. The Buckeyes went from eight wins to 27 wins and a trip to the NCAA Final Four in 1998.

At OSU, Boyages has done exceptional work with charities. As a staff the Buckeyes try to extend themselves to help out in the community.

“You find a couple charities that hit you, and you spend more time with them,” Boyages said.

Boyages sits on the board of his favorite charity “Advantages for Wish Kids.” He said he decided to donate his time to this charity because it touched him as a person.

Boyages coaching talents have also took him around the world. He was honored for successfully bringing together members of the Hutu and Tutsi tribes while coaching the Burundi national team.

In 1998, Boyages coached a NCAA all-star team in the Greek Basketball Federation. Boyages was able to hand-pick his squad.

“The experience was a lot of fun with Michael (Redd) and Scoonie (Penn) on the team,” Boyages said.

In June of 2000, Boyages left OSU to take over the coaching job at William & Mary.

“I left Columbus to be a head coach,” Boyages said. ” I had been a head coach at a young age and wanted to give it another try.”

Boyages said it was a very difficult job. William & Mary had some of the highest academic entrance requirements for student-athletes. It had the toughest requirements in the Colonial Conference.

“Recruiting was the biggest challenge; only 10 percent of the recruits nationally would qualify,” Boyages said.

Boyages decided to return to OSU after a conversation with O’Brien. O’Brien said he felt that Boyages could be of some help. Boyages said it was nice to hear, and he wanted to comeback and have an impact.

Boyages said he is very optimistic about this year’s team. The Buckeyes have the talent, depth and versatility to be a very good team.

“The real goal of the season is to reach and exceed our potential as a team,” Boyages said.

During the first two weeks, O’Brien was absent because of illness, and Boyages stepped in and ran practices.

“From day one, coach Boyages was like the head coach getting the team going,” sophomore forward Matt Sylvester said.

Sylvester said Boyages is an up tempo, hands-on coach that knows a lot about basketball.

“I like (Boyages) a lot. He is very smart and works with us one-on-one to help improve our moves,” junior Tony Stockman said.

Boyages has a wife and three daughters, each under the age of 10. He refers to his wife as a saint. He said she has a very difficult job being a coach’s wife. His daughters are still young, but Boyages said it will be interesting in the next five-to-eight years when his daughters grow up.

He cherishes the time he gets to spend with his wife and kids. In the coaching profession there isn’t a lot of free time during the season.

“I am thankful that the university allows us to travel with our families during holiday tournaments,” Boyages said.