Palo Duro boys basketball coach Jeff Evans announces resignation
The coaching carousel in the Texas Panhandle continues to turn. This time, it's a basketball legend that will be stepping aside.
After 23 years as the head coach of the boys basketball team at Palo Duro High School, Jeff Evans has handed in his resignation. He plans to pursue an assistant coaching position at the collegiate level, sources told the Globe-News.
To say Evans' time at PD was successful would be an understatement. He compiled a record of 546-156 overall with 23 bi-district championships. From 2002-2011, the Dons went an unfathomable 103-1 in district play. Evans also oversaw the development of countless collegiate basketball players, including former Oklahoma Sooner Austin Johnson, who is now the Athletic Director at Ascension Academy. Evans previously coached at Abilene High.
While Palo Duro girls basketball coach AJ Johnson had hinted that he's been contemplating retirement, Evans never suggested that he'd been thinking of leaving. There was no word as to which collegiate programs Evans has been in communication with. The belief is that it will be a school at the Division II or Division III level.
Evans' departure is just the latest in a flurry of moves this offseason, most of them coming on the football field. Football coach Gaylon Selman retired from Randall High School last week — a day before Gruver head coach Lee Brandon resigned. This was after the announcement that Canadian head coach Chris Koetting would retire from coaching, as well, to spend more time with his family after dealing with health issues that have been affecting his "cognitive abilities" the past year.
Evans' resignation is the second basketball coaching change in the AISD in the last week. The district recently announced that Caprock assistant coach Bill Long would be promoted to head coach of the girls basketball team after former head coach David Smiley had been reassigned to an assistant football and track coaching position at Amarillo High.
AISD isn't the only district with coaching changes on the hardwood.
Ovilla Christian Athletic Director Joshua Johnson announced on Twitter that he would be leaving to accept the position of boys basketball head coach at Tulia. Johnson has coached teams to 12 playoff appearances, seven district titles, four regional tournament appearance and one state tournament trip with 200 wins in his career.
Borger athletic director Dane Hamerick, himself a new head coach after previously serving as defensive coordinator at Tascosa in football, announced on Twitter that the school is currently looking for a head baseball and boys basketball coach. Boys Ranch is still in search of an athletic director, baseball coach and football coach.
Sources also told the Globe-News some openings are expected to close this week.
West Texas Stinnett is listed as having an open AD/football coach position, but sources tell the Amarillo Globe-News that the school will be announcing a hire this week. Gruver will also be announcing a hire this week with heavy speculation that it will be a longtime veteran. The school just hired Delma Haberthur as the high school principal. Haberthur's husband, Kurt, is the AD/football coach at Perryton.
This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Palo Duro boys basketball coach Jeff Evans announces resignation
