TLN: Reviewing the top storylines from the 2014-2015 athletics year
As we get older, it seems the calendar moves faster. We’re so busy in the now, we don’t take the time to soak it all in sometimes.
Hopefully, we all have gained some wisdom, laughed a little, cried a little and learned something. For the nine area high schools, the 2014-2015 school year brought all of that.
We examined everything that occurred and determined the Top 5 storylines. Usually, this piece comes out in the middle of June. But because the news cycle carried us a little deeper than normal, we had to push it back.
Having said that, let’s proceed.
The return of Grapevine High School
If there was ever a school that should have sent endless thank-you notes to the University Interscholastic League, this is the school. Grapevine was hardly competitive at the then-Class 5A (now 6A) level. When the realignment came out in February 2014, Grapevine moved down to the new 5A. This school flourished among programs more similar to its own. Team tennis won a state championship. Cross country, boys and girls golf, and girls soccer competed at their respective state tournaments, and Brian Andrews won the state championship in the 195-pound division in wrestling. Football, baseball, softball, boys and girls basketball and boys soccer advanced to the playoffs. Of course, a surge in talent always helps. But when you are competing well at the level you belong in, the results speak to that.
More GCISD comings and goings
It seems something is always going on with the GCISD from an athletics standpoint. Actually, this school year seemed to be pretty tranquil until May. Within 72 hours in mid-May, Colleyville Heritage head football coach Darren Allman was off to Carroll as that district’s new director of athletics and athletics director Phil Blue accepted a similar position in Abilene. Then Superintendent Dr. Robin Ryan appointed assistant AD Bryan Gerlich as Blue’s successor. Gerlich then found Cedar Park’s Joe Willis as Allman’s successor. However, a fiasco later ensued when Jason Wilson was going to be named as the new Grapevine baseball coach until it was learned Ryan interceded. The job went former coach Lee Yeager’s successor in Steve Hutcherson. As much good PR the district seemed to build through April, it was negated by this episode.
Byron Nelson survives, Eaton readies
The growth in the Northwest ISD was showcased when Nelson moved up to Class 6A and the school district started preparations for opening its third high school, V.R. Eaton. While the Bobcats football program struggled to a 3-7 finish, boys basketball, soccer and baseball made the playoffs. The girls sports held their own as well, as volleyball and soccer also made the postseason. As for Eaton, the district started moving athletically when it hired Brad Turner, who had been a head coach in several locations including Springtown, as its first head football coach and athletics coordinator.
Carroll AD search
As we mentioned above, Darren Allman became Carroll’s new athletic director. He succeeded Kevin Ozee, who left last December to take a similar position in Arlington. The news wasn’t so much about Allman but how long the search lasted. Carroll started and stopped this search at least twice before all parties could get on the same page for the candidate it desired. Allman offered a background where he was at one time an AD in a district that had similar demographics and expectations like Carroll has. Allman was at Austin Westlake before he came to Colleyville Heritage.
Keller High is back
With the Keller ISD now divided into four high schools, the talent pool can get diluted. And sometimes, the oldest school tends to suffer. That wasn’t the case in 2014-2015. Keller produced one of the nation’s top football recruits in Maea Teuhema, who signed with LSU in February. Football returned to the playoffs under Carl Stralow. The boys basketball team features one of the most highly recruited players in junior guard R.J. Nembhard. It upset power DeSoto in the playoffs. Baseball advanced all the way to the Region I 6A championship round. Girls basketball and volleyball made the playoffs. Softball advanced to the regional finals. There was also a change in girls athletics leadership. Longtime administrator and volleyball coach Sylvia Ortiz retired. Colleyville Heritage volleyball coach Jamie Siegel became the new head coach and coordinator.
With July starting on Wednesday, the summer is running short. August represents the beginning of the 2015-2016 calendar. Enjoy the down time while it lasts.
This story was originally published June 29, 2015 at 11:43 AM with the headline "TLN: Reviewing the top storylines from the 2014-2015 athletics year."