Chilton's coach Gamble steps down amid charges

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Chilton's coach Gamble steps down amid charges

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Friday, September 28, 2007

By Brice Cherry

Tribune-Herald youth sports editor

Chilton assistant football coach Lucky Gamble has resigned his post after a pair of arrests last weekend in Falls County.

Chilton Athletic Director Robert Little said the decision came after Gamble met with Chilton Superintendent Benny Bobo late Wednesday afternoon.

“By mutual agreement, Coach Gamble and Mr. Bobo decided that it would be best if Coach Gamble no longer coach for us,†Little said. “He tendered his services.â€

Gamble, who coached the offensive and defensive lines, was being paid an hourly wage and had no teaching duties at Chilton High School, Little said.

Falls County police arrested Gamble last Friday on a charge of aggravated assault causing bodily injury, or family violence. He was released after posting a $2,500 bond, a Falls County Jail spokeswoman said, but was arrested again Saturday night on charges of driving while intoxicated and unlawfully carrying a weapon.

Gamble, a Chilton alumnus and Super Centex player in the late 1960s, is one of the more successful high school football coaches in state history. He ranks 14th on Texas’ all-time win list with a 267-69-5 record over a three-decade career, including a 59-10 mark at Chilton from 2001 to 2005.

He also has had a run-in with law enforcement previously. In 2004 he was convicted of assaulting his wife. Gamble was accused of shoving his wife into a bathtub and choking her with both hands, according to records filed in the case.

Gamble left Chilton after the 2005 season to take the head coaching job at Timpson in East Texas. But he resigned from that position before ever coaching a game, in part because he fell ill and had to undergo quadruple-bypass heart surgery in August 2006.

“I’ve gone through just about everything a coach could go through in his career,†Gamble told the Tribune-Herald earlier this month. “But I keep coming back because I love to coach.â€

Gamble was unavailable for comment for this story.

Little said he would coach Chilton’s offensive and defensive lines after Gamble’s departure. The Pirates open up District 25-1A play with a game at Iola tonight.

Little, who coached under Gamble at Chilton before succeeding him as head coach and considers himself a “close friend,†expressed regret Thursday about the way everything turned out.

“I’ve talked to Lucky a couple of times and told him that we’re still going to remain friends,†Little said. “It’s been an unfortunate thing for all involved, but hopefully we’ll all learn and become better people because of it.â€

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[tvc184]

The article says that he has a previous conviction for assaulting his wife. It also says that he was arrested this time on an Unlawful Carrying Weapon charge. If that is true, he may be looking at a few years in the federal penitentiary for illegal possession of a firearms by a person convicted of domestic violence. That may be in additon to any state charges that may be filed. I think Lucky's luck may have run out.

[BearBryant]

Its a shame that a guy that is so successful at what he does can be so self destructive. 

[Mr. Buddy Garrity]

ptiful

[BearWolf]

The article says that he has a previous conviction for assaulting his wife. It also says that he was arrested this time on an Unlawful Carrying Weapon charge. If that is true, he may be looking at a few years in the federal penitentiary for illegal possession of a firearms by a person convicted of domestic violence. That may be in additon to any state charges that may be filed. I think Lucky's luck may have run out.

agree

[Hupernikomen]

Where is his son, Brian, these days?

[Mr. Buddy Garrity]

Where is his son, Brian, these days?

I was just about to ask what was his sons name

[HDBobcats9]

That's definitely a sad story. I caught up with an old EC friend (and coach) last friday at the Hardin/Deweyville game, and we were talking about coach Gamble and his self destruction. When I was in 8th grade at HD, coach Gamble accepted the head coaching job at HD. Brian hung out with us for a few days (he was a 7th grader) and we looked forward to playing with him, since he was already a big kid and awesome athlete. Out of nowhere Lucky decided Daisetta wasnt' the right place for him to be and left eventually taking the head job at Alto. We had decent teams while I was in HS meeting up with coach Gamble in Alto in the playoffs and lost to them. I believe his record was something like 48-6 during the 4 years I was in HS. It would have been interesting to see what he would have done with the talent HD had during the mid '90's. (not to mention having his son, a 5 time all-state player on our team). 

I want to say Coach Gamble started his career back at High Island, leading their 1979 team to the Class B state championship game. That guy has won everywhere he's been........