With Casey Walraven’s departure to take over at Hutto, an attractive 4A job in the DFW area has opened up in Alvarado.

Who are some candidates we’d call if we were Alvarado ISD superintendent Dr. Kenneth Estes?

Candidates listed in alphabetical order

Zach Birdwell, HC Tioga: Alvarado has had some of the state’s top offenses the past two seasons and Birdwell is widely regarded as a young up-and-comer in the state when it comes to offensive masterminds. After serving as offensive coordinator for high-powered offenses in Groveton, Lindsay and Lubbock Coronado, Birdwell got his shot to be a head coach at 2A Tioga in 2023 and has posted a 23-12 record in three seasons. In 2023 he led the Bulldogs to their best season in school history at the 11-man level going 9-4 and advancing to the regional semifinals.

Chip Darden, HC Lubbock Cooper: While this may be out of left field for some, Darden taking a step back from rapidly growing Lubbock-Cooper ISD and getting to a one-horse town isn’t that far-fetched. Darden has had the Pirates on the brink of a state title game appearance twice (state semifinals in 2019 and 2021) and he’s managed to keep his team competitive despite the opening of a second high school in the district. In seven seasons leading Lubbock Cooper, Darden has an impressive 69-22 overall record.

Joaquin Escobar, HC Comanche: Escobar is currently the AD/HFC at his alma mater in Comanche and after five strong seasons, a move to Alvarado wouldn’t be a huge shock. Under Escobar’s leadership, Comanche posted a 10-win season in 2022 and followed it up with a regional semifinal appearance in 2023. After moving up to 3A-Division I in 2024 as one of the state’s smallest schools, Escobar kept CHS competitive posting a 7-4 record and losing in overtime in the bi-district round of the playoffs. He kept them in the mix in 2025 with an extremely young team posting a 5-5 record.

Aubrey Sims, HC Weatherford: Alvarado went with a hometown guy the last hire and it seemed to work out pretty well, so who’s to say they won’t look at another Alvarado product in current Weatherford head coach Aubrey Sims? Sims is a veteran head coach with 21-seasons of experience under his belt, he led Grandview from 2005-2011 where former Alvarado head coach Casey Walraven was on his staff. He went to West Texas in 2012 and led Snyder for two seasons, before taking over at Iowa Park in 2014 where he remained until 2020 when he took over at Weatherford. Sims has a career record of 154-91, he took Iowa Park to a state semifinal appearance in 2018, he led Grandview (2008) and Iowa Park (2019) to the regional finals as well.

Daniel Spencer, OC Alvarado: The ties to Grandview are evident here as Zebras legend Daniel Spencer who played for Sims at Grandview, where Casey Walraven was his head coach is the likely strongest internal candidate if he doesn’t head to Hutto. Alvarado’s offense has been one of the state’s best under Spencer’s watch as the offensive coordinator and from a continuity standpoint there’s not a better fit than this Johnson County legend.