'We're in a good spot': Hillcrest grad Todd Gillespie takes over for Townsend Orr as T.F. South coach

Todd Gillespie was a starting guard on a wildly gifted Hillcrest boys basketball team that drew capacity crowds all over the Southland.

With the dynamic Jessie James at point guard, 6-foot-6 Torrie Lewis manning the middle and the silky-smooth Gillespie at shooting guard, the 1990-91 Hawks played an uptempo style with a suffocating, trap defense that was a must-see.

Gillespie hopes to bring similar excitement to T.F. South as its varsity boys basketball coach.

Gillespie, a 1992 Hillcrest grad, takes over for Townsend Orr, who resigned after two seasons for family reasons.

Gillespie had been an assistant on Orr’s staff the past two seasons.

“I’m excited about the possibilities we can achieve with this program,” he said. “I want to put the pieces in place to achieve the ultimate goal, and that’s to win state.”

Gillespie, 44, recalled how the Hawks had similar aspirations during that 1990-91 season. The Hawks advanced to the Class AA state quarterfinals, only to be upset by Libertyville.

Gillespie related how it took him 28 years to watch that game.

“I couldn’t watch it until recently,” Gillespie said with a laugh. “We thought we were going to win it all. We got upset, which is a life lesson. But we still have some great memories from that season.”

Gillespie played one season at Creighton before transferring to Kankakee Community College. He eventually played two seasons at Chicago State for former Bulls guard Craig Hodges.

“I learned a lot from Craig about the triangle offense,” Gillespie said. “It was fun to play for him.”

Before joining Orr’s staff, Gillespie coached the freshmen at Hillcrest under Don Houston and the sophomore team at Thornridge under Rocky Hill.

“I learned a lot from all three,” Gillespie said. “There are different ages and offered different perspectives.”

Gillespie has several key pieces returning from a team that finished 19-13. Tops among them are senior center Elijah Watson and sophomore Xavier Lewis.

“I’m going to stress that if you do things the right way, practice fundamentals and listen to your coaches, you can be successful,” Gillespie said. “Communicate with each other. Do the little things and good things can happen.”

Gillespie also starred on the football field at Hillcrest. He’s a big believer in student-athletes playing multiple sports.

T.F. South athletic director Marc Brewe didn’t want to see Orr go. But Brewe feels he has found an ideal successor in Gillespie.

“Similar to Townsend, Todd is a high-character person and a great role model for our student-athletes,” Brewe said. “He can lead and continue to build and improve what we have. We’re in a good spot.”