San Angelo Central Promotes Offensive Coordinator Kevin Crane

As expected, San Angelo ISD named longtime offensive coordinator Kevin Crane as the next head football coach at San Angelo Central on Thursday. This looked to be the play from the jump after head coach Brent Davis left to take over at Gregory-Portland. Crane had the support of the San Angelo community at-large and that made the decision easy for San Angelo ISD athletic director Rodney Chant. Crane was more than ready for this opportunity and it’s doubtful you’ll see San Angelo Central look much different than what they have looked in the past few seasons.

Waxahachie Set to Hire

Waxahachie ISD looks set to hire their next football coach on Monday evening. The district interviewed eight candidates the last week of January and brought back a group of finalists last week for the final interview round. Sources indicate all four candidates are from the DFW area with a very successful assistant with state title pedigree being the leading contender.

Wylie East Hires Whitehouse HC Marcus Gold

Whitehouse head coach Marcus Gold is becoming the third head coach in the history of Wylie East. Gold, a native of Irving, who played college football at Texas A&M, had spent time at Wylie East as an assistant from 2012-2014. Gold had been at Whitehouse since 2015 where he was promoted to head coach in time for the 2018 season; he posted a solid 23-11 mark in three years leading the Wildcats. His departure leaves a very attractive opening in East Texas that should draw plenty of interest statewide.

Chris Gilbert Heads South for a New Shade of Orange

Lancaster head coach Chris Gilbert is leaving his post at WEBO after 10 seasons to become the new director of high school relations on the staff at the University of Texas.

Lepsis Resigns at New Braunfels Canyon in a Surprise Move

After three seasons at the helm, Joe Lepsis resigned his post as head coach at New Braunfels Canyon. Lepsis authored one of the state’s best turnarounds in recent memory as the Cougars bounced back from an 0-10 season in 2019 to post an 11-2 record and a trip to the regional semifinals in 2020. The move did raise some eyebrows statewide. Sources indicate the relationship between Comal ISD administration and Coach Lepsis had soured to a point where the two sides had to part ways.

Jimmy Thomas Returns to the Sidelines at Littlefield

After one year in administration, the sidelines beckoned for Jimmy Thomas, who was introduced as the next head football coach/athletic director at Littlefield on Wednesday. Thomas, who has 16 seasons of head coaching experience and holds a 100-76 overall record, led Bushland to a 12-1 record in 2019 before heading into administration. He know faces the task of bringing a struggling Littlefield program back to prominence.

Marlin Looks Way Out West To Name Their Next Head Coach

In what appears to be a surprise move on the surface, Marlin ISD on Monday named El Paso Franklin offensive coordinator Ruben Torres as their next head football coach. From 2012-2017, Torres was a head coach in the El Paso area posting a 35-29 record at El Paso Ysleta and El Paso El Dorado. There are some connections there as Marlin ISD superintendent Dr. Darryl Henson worked as a principal in Ysleta ISD and got to know Coach Torres. Torres takes over a Marlin program that appears to be on more stable ground after several years of turmoil and change within the athletic department and the district as a whole. The Bulldogs made the postseason in 2020 as a 2A-Division I school and bring back a good amount of talent for the 2021 season.

Kyle Freeman Resurfaces in East Texas

Linden-Kildare in a surprise move named Edna co-defensive coordinator Kyle Freeman as their next HFC/AD on Monday night. Freeman, who has six seasons of head coaching experience at Bruni and Ozona, was not a name mentioned originally in circles associated with this job. Freeman, a native of Snyder, has spent most of his coaching career in West Texas before going to South Texas in his first head coaching gig at Bruni, where he led the Badgers to the regional finals in 2015. Freeman has an overall record of 44-26 as a head coach at Bruni and Ozona.

Morton Returns to UIL 11-man Football

Morton, who dropped to Class 1A in UIL realignment last year, is moving back to 11-man football for 2021 as the District 1-2A Division II DEC voted to allow the Indians into their district for this football season. Head coach Brian Ramsey knew Morton’s foray into six-man would be brief as enrollment expects to push Morton back into 11-man football for the 2022 season. Now they’ll try to go about filling  a non-district schedule on the fly.