Aberdeen Christian has a new boys’ basketball coach and it turns out it’s a familiar one.

Matt Rohrbach, who coached the team for one season two years ago, is returning to be the head coach of the Knights again. Only this time, the former standout ACS player, will be the new athletic director as well.

“I kind of had to look for something a little more long term. I was interested in the possibility of coupling out the athletic director job,” Rohrbach said. “They had mentioned that was a possibility. I pretty much said that’s about the only the way I could do it, financially making it work, is to do both at the same time.”

Rohrbach took the Knights to the state tournament in his only season as the head coach where they finished third place. The squad featured six seniors and Christian also lost a senior this past season. There are still a couple of key players that played under Rohrbach on the squad.

Rohrbach said all basketball teams go through stages in their programs.

“I just want these kids, at least in my mind, to have the same level of respect from me and people around the school,” Rohrbach said. “Yeah we lost an unbelievable crew of seniors the last couple of years … but I want them to at least have the ability to, you know what, I can work my butt off too and get to that point and maybe change the way people see me or the program again as we’re headed towards the future.”

Rohrbach spent last season as an assistant coach for Jamestown University and picked up some valuable experience, although at the time, he did not envision a return to the high school ranks.

“There’s always things that you don’t know. That is why I’m definitely happy for the opportunity that I had at Jamestown,” Rohrbach said, “Especially now that I’m coaching again, because I kind of thought I was done, so I wasn’t sure why maybe I was up at Jamestown, and then all of a sudden here I am getting an opportunity to coach Christian again, and now I’m definitely thankful that I was up there last year.”

Rohrbach is particularly excited about his new role as the school’s athletic director.

“That was kind of number one for me,” he said.

While he knows it will be a big learning curve, he is looking forward to the challenge.

“I’m pretty excited for it,” Rohrbach said. “I’ve always kind of wanted to be an AD. … Honestly, just excited to get going and kind of see what the future holds.”