Bill Bestwick
Bill Bestwick was an outstanding athlete at Sharon High and a longtime coach out of Grove City High School, who helped guide many young people throughout his career as a teacher at George Junior Republic.
Bill was a standout football player at Sharon, from where he graduated in 1965. In his senior year, he set a single-game school record by completing 18 passes against Butler High School. He was the last player in Mercer County to dropkick an extra point, turning the feat against Ellwood City in 1964. He was co-captain of the Tigers team that season.
He was an outstanding golfer and three-year letterman at Sharon.
He went to the University of South Carolina and later graduated from Slippery Rock University in 1973. He played one year of football in college.He played American Legion baseball for three years, helping his team win two league titles. He played softball for 14 years as part of the Shenango Valley Church League, Youngstown Fast-Pitch League and Grove City Slo-Pitch League during that span.
He had a long and illustrious coaching career for 27 years. He served as a head basketball (2 years) and baseball (3 years) coach at George Junior Republic; assistant football (4 years) and head football (5 years) coach at Grove City High; and assistant football coach at both Grove City College (7 years) and Westminster College (6 years).
He served as a radio color commentator for football and basketball for WWIZ for two years and organized and ran the invitational table tennis tourney for GJR students for 30 years.
He has been a board member of the Mercer County Hall of Fame for 17 years and serves as first vice president and secretary of the Induction Committee. He served on the Grove City Civil Service/Police Commission.
An avid golfer, he has posted three holes-in-one. He is a standout racquetball player and competes in local tournaments in singles and doubles competition.
He has been a member of the Mercer County Coaches Association, West Penn Coaches Association/Pa. Scholastic Football Association, NCAA Coaches Association and National Football Foundation.