May 28—FRANKLIN — Middletown Christian Schools stayed in-house with its search for a new boys basketball coach, promoting assistant athletic director and varsity assistant Jarred Jermacans to lead the Eagles program following the departure of Ryan Fairchild after the 2025-26 season.

Jermacans spent the past year on Middletown Christian's varsity coaching staff while also serving full-time in the school's athletic department, giving him daily interaction with the Eagles' student-athletes and positioning him as a familiar presence within the program.

School officials said Jermacans' background in Christian education, player development and mentorship made him a natural fit to continue building the program's culture both on and off the court.

"We are excited for the passion, leadership, and experience he will bring to our program," Middletown Christian athletic director Christian Vanover said in a statement. "His background in Christian school basketball, both as a player and a coach, gives him a strong understanding of how to lead young men both on and off the court. I have no doubt he will guide our boys the right way while continuing to push our program toward success every step of the way."

Jermacans replaces Fairchild, who left Middletown Christian to become the head boys coach at Madison.

The transition offered continuity for the Eagles, who already had an established relationship with Jermacans through his role as varsity assistant and assistant athletic director.

"A lot of my coaching philosophy is relationship-based coaching," Jermacans said. "I firmly believe if you have a positive reinforcing relationship with the student-athletes, obviously within basketball but also caring for them in their faith journey and academically and just caring for them on a day-to-day basis, it makes a huge difference."

Jermacans said being inside the school building every day has helped him build trust with players beyond basketball.

"Being the assistant athletic director, I have a unique opportunity to know these students more," Jermacans said. "When you have that relationship, it's easier for them to be coachable. They can take critique a little bit better, and we can have tougher conversations together about things they need to improve on."

Originally from Berks County, Pennsylvania, Jermacans graduated from Berks Christian School, where he later began his coaching career. He played varsity basketball there before receiving an opportunity to continue his playing career at the University of Valley Forge.

After deciding to pursue coaching and mentorship opportunities, Jermacans returned to his alma mater and quickly climbed the coaching ladder. He served as an eighth-grade head coach during his freshman year of college, became the junior varsity head coach and varsity assistant as a sophomore, then took over as varsity head coach during his junior year — a season complicated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

"It was a heck of a year to have as your first year as a varsity coach," Jermacans said. "But it was a great learning experience. I really loved learning how to build a program."

Jermacans later moved to Florida, where he coached at multiple levels while also focusing heavily on player development and individual training sessions. He eventually relocated to Ohio to pursue a master's degree in sport administration at the University of Cincinnati, where he worked as a graduate assistant in the school's club sports department.

Last season marked his first year coaching high school basketball in Ohio.

Jermacans said his basketball philosophy centers around developing players who can think and react rather than simply follow scripted actions.

"A big part of my philosophy is not wanting to build robots, but build basketball players," Jermacans said. "A lot of our offensive philosophy is conceptual basketball and teaching players how to read the game and understand what the defense is giving them."

Defensively, Jermacans wants the Eagles to establish an aggressive identity.

"We like to get after it," Jermacans said. "Diving on the floor for loose balls, pressuring teams when we can and making the other team feel us. Hopefully our defense creates most of our offense."

Jermacans said continuity will also extend to the coaching staff. Varsity assistant Eric Gwinn and junior varsity coach Alan Holtrey are both expected to return, while the Eagles continue searching for another assistant coach.

School officials said the program's emphasis moving forward will remain centered on faith, accountability, player development and preparing student-athletes spiritually, academically and athletically.