Playing in the rough and tough Sagamore Athletic Conference isn’t for every basketball player. For Wabash senior and former Danville Warrior Sam Comer, it’s what helped him mold himself to the player he turned into over the course of his four-year career with the Little Giants. Last Friday, Comer played in his final game in a Little Giant uniform and it concluded a career that’s seen him be a part of three straight North Coast Athletic Conference Championship teams and play in three NCAA Division III Men’s Basketball tournaments.
His sophomore season, Comer got his feet wet with Wabash as the Little Giants made it all the way to the Final Four. Comer appeared in 25 games and provided the Little Giants with a boost off the bench. The last two years is where he’s found his best version of himself. Comer has started 52 out of 55 games and been a constant averaging nearly 11 points per game and six rebounds. Standing at 6’5, Comer plays much bigger as he’s routinely been banging bodies down low. It’s been a hard-work mentality from day one for the senior who always gets high praise from Wabash coach Kyle Brumett.
“The Sagamore conference not only produces great athletes, but great people and that’s what we knew we were getting with Sam Comer,” Brumett said. “It’s one of the main reasons we wanted him here at Wabash. I’ve know Brian Barber (current Danville Boys basketball coach) basically my entire professional coaching life. We’ve developed a great relationship and he knew too that Sam would be a great fit for us. The Comer’s are just an athletic family all the way around and we couldn’t have asked for a better player but more importantly a better man.”
What sticks out the most about Comer is that while he was never the leading scorer on his team’s with the Warriors, like he did with the Little Giants, he found ways to impact the game. That’s what allowed him to be out on the floor. During his time with the Warriors from the 2016-17 through his senior year in 2019-20, Comer and the Warriors went 78-27 and won two Sagamore Conference titles and three sectional titles, and a regional title. He averaged 10.5 and 10.7 points his junior and senior year respectively with 8.2 his sophomore year.
Those number are very similar to his stats with the Little Giants, but as Comer says, it’s never been about the stats for him during his basketball career.
“I’ve always been a part of teams that aren’t selfish and they don’t care who scores,” Comer said. “It’s been a real blessing throughout my entire career to say that I’ve always been part of winning teams. With that has come this role that I’ve accepted that I’m going to do whatever it takes for us to win. I really love playing that role and I’ve relished in it. There’s so many other aspects of the game that I can have an impact on.”
That winning culture that Comer learned about with the Warriors transitioned well over to the Little Giants. In his three seasons (freshman year was COVID), Comer and the Little Giants have produced a 69-21 record. The tradition of winning with the Little Giants is something that Comer got to experience right away as a freshman and sophomore with getting to play with the likes of Jack Davidson, Tyler Watson, and Kellen Schreiber. It’s something that when his time came to lead, he was ready.
“Those guys really brought all of us young guys along and built that winning culture and mindset when I got here,” Comer said. “Now us older guys as seniors are carrying on what they started the best we can. I think when Jack and that group left, people counted us out, but we wanted to continue the winning tradition and keep building the great culture that Wabash is known for.”
Now that his four years with the Little Giants are done, Comer and this senior group have left their own mark in Little Giant history. It’s safe to say that Wabash was the perfect fit for the former Danville Warrior.
“Sam is one of those guys who we’ll remember for his leadership first and foremost,” Brumett said. “He’s gained so much trust and leadership with our coaches the last few years. I know as a coach you’re not supposed to have favorites and all of that, but there’s no doubt about it that Sam Comer is one of my favorite players that I’ve ever coached.”
