Another Hoops Honor for ‘Elmer the Great’

Huntington Beach High School dedicated its gymnasium Friday to honor former student and basketball coach Elmer Combs.

Combs, 68, who now lives in Palm Desert, was on hand for the ceremony at half-time during the boys’ game against Los Alamitos High. Both schools’ teams are coached by former Combs players.

“He is a legend in Huntington Beach,” said teacher Bill Garland, who led the campaign to rename the gym. “He grew up in Huntington Beach, he went to elementary school here, and he played basketball in Huntington Beach.”

During Combs’ 20 years as coach, his teams won 73% of their games and went to the playoffs 15 times.

As a student at Huntington Beach High, he played on the 1942-46 championship basketball teams and was nicknamed “Elmer the Great,” which has stuck with him since, Garland said.

Garland began pushing in 1988, when Combs retired, to have the gym dedicated. Because the 90-year-old school is an integral part of the city’s history, he said, he consulted community groups, students, teachers and school district officials.

“It’s just something you don’t take lightly,” he said.