Schools get new hires for next season

[KFDM COOP]

Schools get new hires for next season

Van Wade

The Orange Leader

It’s that time of the year when coaches go on that carousel ride, switching schools are leaving the Southeast Texas area in general.

The biggest hole to fill in Orange County this summer season is at Orangefield, where the school district is looking for a new athletic director and head football coach after the departure of Blake Morrison, who accepted the defensive coordinator position at Coldspring.

Morrison isn’t the only head coach that was lost in Orange County heading into the new school year.

West Orange-Stark is also in search of a new head boys basketball coach after Zach Quinn left to go lead his alma mater at Vidor High School.

Little Cypress-Mauriceville is in the hunt for a head boys soccer coach after Matt Wedel, who had a tremendous amount of success in leading the Bear program, took over as the head coach at Vidor.

Plenty of assistants have come and gone as for as football staffs for the upcoming campaign.

New Bear AD and head football coach Randy Crouch has just about got his football staff complete for the upcoming season.

“Things are looking good for us at this point,†said Crouch. “We feel like we’ve put together a good, solid coaching staff. Most of us know each other very well and get along great. This is the time of the year when things shuffle around in our business, that’s always kinda expected. We’ve got some good veteran coaches and some young and hard-working coaches. It truly is a good mix.â€

Troy Bolton, who has applied for the Orangefield post, is the offensive coordinator for the Bears while Mike Pierce, who came over from WO-S with Coach Crouch, will be the defensive coordinator. Both David Kendrick and Alan DeShazo return from last year’s staff. LC-M has added T.J. Reed, who was previously at Luling, to the staff along with former Orangefield assistants Roy Farias and Eric Peevey.

Long-time WO-S Athletic Director Dan Hooks is trying to put the final pieces of his football staff together.

The Mustangs suffered a blow when former Kountze head coach Stan Hodges was hired but left due to personal reasons.

WO-S did land solid PN-G assistant Carl Broussard. Coach hooks is still interviewing for a couple spots and there is a possibility that long-time former assistant Mark Foreman might return as a coach after going into retirement.

“This time of year. it always seems you’re looking to fill a couple spots,†said Hooks. “We’ve got an excellent staff here already and you want to find that right mix. We’re fortunate to get Coach Crawford in here. We’re in the process of interviewing a coach that coached in this area once before and if we get Coach Foreman back, imagine what kind of bonus that would be.â€

Vidor coach Jeff Mathews has had virtually no changes to his staff and even added one as former Port Neches-Groves assistant Dan Welch will help on the offensive line.

“We’re glad to have Coach Welch here,†said Mathews. “Our staff has remained intact, but you never know what can happen over the course of the summer. We also did well in getting Coach (Zach) Quinn over here to lead our basketball program.â€

The search for an athletic director at Orangefield High School has pulled in 21 names so far, several from local school districts.

The Bobcats’ new AD and head football coach will have plenty of options as far as bringing in new people to the staff as several former Bobcat assistants departed including Mike Stewart, Chris Theriot, Farias, Peevey and Chad Coulter.

Stewart, the Bobcats’ offensive coordinator last season, is now the head football coach at Kountze. Theriot is now an assistant at Nederland. Farias and Peevey have made the move to LC-M while Coulter has gotten out of coaching.

OISD Superintendent Phillip Welch released the list of candidates last Monday and reported in a press release a recommendation will be made at a June 22 meeting of the OISD School Board.

LC-M’s Bolton, PN-G defensive coordinator Carl Broussard, High Island AD Paul Colton, Vidor offensive coordinator Dwayne DuBois, Beaumont Kelly AD Mike Long, Port Arthur Memorial assistant coach Wayne McKeller, Beaumont West Brook assistant coach Jeff Peveto and Memorial defensive coordinator Curtis Viola highlight the local coaches in the running.

Welch reported interviews will be conducted the week of June 15.

Marlin OC Greg Bass, Spring ISD assistant coach Gary Brewton, Mexia OC Thomas Dracos, Nixon-Smiley head coach James Duprie, Westwood OC Danny Faust, Hutto DC Ryan George, Paul Pewitt AD Brian Huckabay, Burkeville OC Brandon Morgan, Bryan athletic consultant Bob McLeroy, Dallas’ Caleb Peveto, Greenville AD Jim Phillps, Haltom DC Josh Rankin and Mount Pleasant DC Michael Waldie round out the list of candidates.

Morrison served as the Orangefield athletic director the last five seasons and coached at the school for nine years.

The Bobcats went 12-34 under Morrison and went 1-7 in 2008. Morrison stepped up from defensive coordinator in the 2004 season after Kevin Flanigan left for Crosby High School. Flanigan’s last season, 2003, is the last year Orangefield has reached the playoffs.

[Mr. Buddy Garrity]

Foreman coming back? I remember him from when I was younger.

[skipper]

wo-s coaching staff is looking better all the time,great job coach hooks.PS mc brown your buddy says he cant leave UT at this time he is besy getting your kids you keep sending him.he says UT might haft to change there colors LMAO :)

[stang4life]

wo-s coaching staff is looking better all the time,great job coach hooks.PS mc brown your buddy says he cant leave UT at this time he is besy getting your kids you keep sending him.he says UT might haft to change there colors LMAO :)

LOL!  Good one!  I just hope all falls into place!