South Grand Prairie Hires Arlington Lamar’s Laban DeLay

Arlington Lamar head coach Laban DeLay announced on Tuesday he was leaving Lamar to become the next head coach at South Grand Prairie.

DeLay returns to SGP where he was an assistant under Brent Whitson from 2007-2014; Whitson left SGP last month to take over as the HFC/AD at Denison.

DeLay posted a 46-23 overall record at Lamar, including a pair of 11-2 records in 2015 and 2018. He holds an overall head coaching record of 66-44 as he also was head coach at Hubbard from 2003-2006.

DeLay’s departure from Lamar means Arlington ISD will have a second head coaching vacancy to fill this offseason as they recently filled the opening at Arlington Bowie. The new head coach will be just the fourth head coach in school history at Lamar.

There is one strong internal candidate who likely gets considered and there’s a current DFW head coach with extensive ties to the school who may get a serious look as well.

Henderson Reassigns Phil Castles

Changes are afoot all over the Henderson ISD Athletic Department and those changes are from the top as Henderson ISD on Monday reassigned Phil Castles after eight seasons and an impressive 62-33 overall record.

Castles advanced to the regional finals in 2014, 2017 and 2018, but the Lions started trending down in 2019 with a 7-4 mark and last year stumbled from the jump going 3-6 and missing out on the playoffs for the first time since 2015.

Castles has an impressive 145-82 overall record in 19 years as a head coach with stops at Elysian Fields, Tyler Chapel Hill, Corsicana and Henderson.

The opening at Henderson is one of two very attractive openings in District 9-4A Division I, but there is some question if Henderson ISD administration is going to keep the HFC/AD title or if they will decide to separate the roles.

Kilgore’s Mike Wood Goes AD Only

In addition to Henderson, changes were made in Kilgore as head coach Mike Wood is moving into an athletic director-only position in Kilgore ISD.

Wood posted an 83-53 overall record in 11 seasons and led the Bulldogs to the state title game in 2013.  In his final year at the helm, Kilgore posted a 10-4 record and advanced all the way to the regional finals, falling to district rival Lindale.

Brent Kornegay Announces His Retirement

George West head coach Brent Kornegay announced his retirement on Friday after a long career in education, including 18 seasons as a head coach at Orange Grove, Yoakum and George West.

Kornegay retires with a solid 124-79 overall record, with his best seasons coming in 2014 when he led Yoakum to a 10-4 record and a trip to the regional finals and in 2019 when he guided George West to a 12-1 overall record.

Kornegay’s retirement leaves a very attractive job opening down in South Texas as George West has been a consistent winner down in the 361.