This Week in TXHSFB: Cy-Fair and Colleyville Heritage with Big Hires; Mexia gets DCTF's 2019 Coach of the Year

Kirk Martin (Photo by Russell Wilburn)

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Cy-Fair Brings Jeff Miller Home

Rockdale head coach Jeff Miller informed his team on Wednesday that he would be leaving Rockdale to return to his alma mater and lead Cy-Fair as their head coach. Miller has spent the last 15 seasons leading Rockdale, including the 2017 3A Division I state championship, ironically the same year Cy-Fair won their first state title in 6A-Division II. Miller also led Rockdale to the 4A-Division II regional finals in 2013 and the 3A-Division I regional finals in 2014 along with a regional semifinal appearance in 2016. Miller owns a 141-82 overall record in 19 seasons as a head coach with stints at Fort Worth North Side and Jacksboro before moving to Rockdale in 2006.  Miller returns to his alma mater where he played quarterback and led Cy-Fair to the state semifinals in 1985, losing to Odessa Permian, 10-7.

 

Klein Forest Makes a Change

Klein Forest head coach Ajani Sanders will not return for a fifth season at Klein Forest. His teams struggled in his four years, winning just six games and are currently mired in a 19-game losing streak. Klein ISD has only posted the job on the KISD website, which leads me to believe either the district already has a candidate in mind or they are really only considering applicants inside of Klein ISD.

 

Fort Bend Ridge Point Hires Rick LaFavers

Fort Bend ISD named Rosenberg Lamar Consolidated head coach Rick LaFavers to be the second head coach in school history at Ridge Point on Monday. LaFavers, a native of Amarillo, spent five seasons at Lamar Consolidated. After winning just four games in his first three seasons, he led the Mustangs to the playoffs in 2018 and 2019, including a 9-3 mark in 2019. LaFavers will have a chance to coach his son Austin LaFavers, who plays on the offensive line at RPHS.

 

Colleyville Heritage Brings Kirk Martin Back to Texas

Kirk Martin’s last game as a head coach in Texas will be remembered as one of the greatest games in TXHSFB history as he was on the losing end of the 2017 5A-Division I state title game. After two years as an assistant on staff at Syracuse, Martin will return to Texas to lead Colleyville Heritage as their next head football coach. Martin, who coached at Manvel from 2008-2017, led the Mavericks to an impressive 108-25 record and a pair of state championship appearances.

 

Changes in Donna ISD

Donna ISD is looking to replace head coaches at both of their high schools. Donna High School will look to replace Ramiro Leal who posted a 37-35 record in seven seasons. Long struggling Donna North, who is in the midst of a 24-game losing streak, will have a new head coach as Joe Marichalar will not be back for a third season. Donna North has not won more than two games in a single season in six seasons as a varsity program.

 

Ron Rittiman to Alamo Heights

The only head football coach San Antonio Johnson has known is departing as Ron Rittiman leaves the Jaguars to become the head football coach and athletic director at Alamo Heights. Rittiman spent 12 seasons leading Johnson, posting a 74-59 record and led the Jaguars to the 2013 6A-Division II state semifinals. Alamo Heights, which has decided to combine head football coach and athletic director into one position, is hoping Rittiman can restore the Mules to Region IV prominence at the 5A level.

 

Hallsville Lands New AD; Begins HFC Search

Hallsville ISD named Commerce head coach Cody Farrell as HISD Athletic Director on Tuesday night. Farrell, who was on staff at Hallsville, previously spent the past three years as the head football coach at Commerce High School. Farrell and Hallsville ISD now turn their attention to searching for a new head football coach to replace Joe Drennon, who departed for Grand Saline.

 

Abron Leaves Paul Pewitt to Take Over at Mexia

Dave Campbell’s Texas Football’s 2019 Coach of the Year is on the move as Omaha Pewitt head coach Triston Abron was named the head coach/athletic director at Class 4A Mexia at Monday night’s board meeting. Abron in two seasons posted a 22-5 overall record at Pewitt and led the Brahmas to the 3A-Division II state title game. Abron’s departure leaves a big opening at one of the better smaller schools in East Texas.

 

Thomas Sitton Returns to East Texas

In a rare Saturday coaching move, Rusk ISD named Converse Judson defensive coordinator Thomas Sitton as their next head football coach/athletic director. Sitton, a native of Cushing, spent time as an assistant at Alto, New Braunfels, Lake Worth and Jacksonville, before landing the Tyler Chapel Hill job in 2009. In eight seasons leading the Bulldogs, Sitton posted a 56-41 record and led Chapel Hill to a state title in 2011 and a state runner-up finish in 2010. He’s spent the last three seasons as the defensive coordinator at Class 6A powerhouse Converse Judson.

 

Eustace Lands Monty Leaf

Long struggling Eustace looks to revive their program after they parted ways with Steve Smith after just two seasons earlier in the off-season. The Bulldogs are turning to Birdville assistant head coach Monty Leaf to try and turn their program around. Leaf, a well thought of assistant coach, will have his work cut out for him in a tough district in 2020.

 

Schulenburg Head Coach Brandon Brown Resigns

After six seasons in Schulenburg, head coach Brandon Brown resigned his post on Friday according to the SISD superintendent. Schulenburg did make the playoffs last year in 3A-Division II and they are dropping to 2A-Division I, but they drop into one of the state’s toughest districts with the likes of Shiner, Weimar, Flatonia and Ganado.

 

No “This Week in TXHSFB” Next Week

There will be no “This Week in TXHSFB” next week, the next edition will be March 11.

 

It’s officially clinic season in the state of Texas and if you have coaching clinic information that we are missing below by all means send it our way! You can e-mail it to me at matt.stepp@texasfootball.com or reach out to me on twitter @Matt_Stepp817.

February 26: 3rd 2020 NTFCA Coaches' Clinic, Fort Worth

March 4: 4th 2020 NTFCA Coaches' Clinic, Dallas

May 1-2: El Paso Football Clinic, El Paso

May 15-16: I-45 Clinic, The Woodlands

June 11-13: Angelo Football Clinic, San Angelo

June 11-13: Dos Amigos Clinic, Eagle Pass

July 19-21: 2020 THSCA Coaches Convention & Coaching School, San Antonio

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Matt Stepp is the Texas High School Football Inside for Dave Campbell’s Texas Football. Find him on Twitter: @Matt_Stepp817.

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