Interim tag erased, Huth named Dalton boys hoops coach
Cody Huth, named the interim head coach of the Dalton High boys basketball team midway through this past season, has been hired as the Bulldogs' full-time coach.
Simply put, Dalton athletics have been a big part of Cody Huth’s life.
It’s one reason why the 2014 graduate stepped up to lead the boys basketball program after the sudden resignation of Justin Greenfelder just four games into the season this past December.
And it’s another reason, among many others, that Huth was officially named head coach of the program on April 22, after guiding the Bulldogs to a runner-up finish in the Wayne County Athletic League and a Division IV district championship.
“What excites me the most about this opportunity is continuing to be a part of the Dalton community,” Huth said. “I grew up here, played here in high school and have coached in some capacity for 10 years here. It is a great place to be, with kids that are high-character, hardworking individuals.”
If anyone needed any proof the 28-year-old was ready for the position, he compiled a long list of highlights for his resume this past winter.
After Greenfelder stepped down, Huth guided Dalton to 15 wins in his 21 games at the helm, which included a 59-52 victory in the district title game against Lake Center Christian.
Huth, a former basketball and baseball standout at the school, would slowly put his stamp on the program, which had already started later than any other area team after the football team’s historic run to the Div. VII state championship game.
“With a late start due to football, we did not have much of a playbook installed anyway at that point,” he said. “Our biggest changes came on the defensive end of the floor, as we really emphasized helping in the gaps and fighting through ball screens. With those changes I think our intensity naturally increased on that end, and we became a really solid defensive team in the halfcourt.”
Behind the leadership of veteran guard Brady Hignight, a junior who was limited at the beginning of the season due to a football injury, the Bulldogs went on to compile a 16-10 record, 10-4 in the WCAL.
Hignight, who averaged 10.8 points a night, wasn’t alone. A stellar backcourt included Keller McFarren and Coy Wenger, who came together as the season progressed.
Both Hignight and Wenger — first- and second-team all-county selections, respectively — are among a host of players back for Huth’s first full season at the helm in 2024-25.
“Our returning roster is full of guys with quickness and the ability to get downhill,” Huth said. “We also have a lot of hard workers on the defensive end.
“With a full offseason now to prepare, I am hoping to find a press or trapping defense that can stick, as we struggled a little bit with rotations during traps last season. Offensively, we will continue to emphasize turning the corner and getting to the rim, as we did a lot more in the second half of last season and into the tournament.”
Huth is no stranger to coaching since graduating from Dalton as he has been with the baseball program, led by his father Scott Huth, since 2015, helping it to a share of two of the last three WCAL championships. He also has coached basketball at both the middle school and high school levels at Dalton, most recently being an assistant on the girls staff — earning OHSBCA District 4 Assistant Coach of the Year — before switching to the boys side this past winter.
Huth, who works as a financial adviser, also coached JV golf for the school in 2023.
So being a Bulldog is just in his blood.
“I was at the high school practices a lot as a ball boy in my younger years, and as most kids do, I looked up to the high school athletes and wanted to be them,” Huth said. “However, I also looked up to (former boys basketball) coach (Nate) Stutz and my father and probably idolized them even more.
“To have the opportunity to follow in their footsteps in this program is truly a dream come true.”