Drew Young knew he would have to go home sooner or later, and an opportunity fell into his lap he simply couldn’t refuse.
The Sherman athletic director and head football coach officially announced his retirement on Monday effective June 26, when he will become the first full-time athletic director at Durant public schools beginning July 20.
In what was an ironic twist of fate, Young will lead a school he once played against on the athletic field in junior high and high school growing up in Ardmore. The Southeastern Oklahoma State graduate knew the time would come but didn’t necessarily think it would come so soon.
“We were rivals at Ardmore and Durant, but the one big thing we had in common was both hating Ada,” Young said with a laugh. “It’s a great opportunity for me financially and Durant has some of if not the best athletic facilities in the state of Oklahoma. I’m familiar with many people in the area and have competed with a lot of them in the past, so I couldn’t pass up the opportunity.”
Young will make the 25-mile commute from Sherman to Durant while his wife will remain teaching at Sherman High School. He will continue his duties the next 24 days in an attempt to tie up any loose ends and make a smooth transition to the next coach, who is expected to be hired before he leaves.
A 32-year reign of roaming the sidelines on Friday nights will come to a close for Young, who told the players earlier in the day of his decision. He was named Sherman’s defensive coordinator in 1995 under Ronnie Tipps, promoted to head coach in 2003 and missed time due to a heart attack that sidelined him in September of 2007.
“It was definitely a great bunch of kids and staff to work with, and we were a ‘complete’ program when it came to sports,” said Young, who was 37-29 in his six seasons in charge of the Bearcats and coached teams who went a combined 95-62 and competed in 20 playoff games (9-11 record). “The best job I ever had was having an office next door to Coach Tipps, who helped me realize my dream of coaching in Texas.”
Tipps left to become Southlake Carroll’s athletic director, creating an opening originally given to Garland Naaman Forest’s Bill Patterson, who backed out the next morning after learning of the school board’s 4-3 vote in favor of his hiring. Young was later hired, and although it had to give him mixed emotions of being the “second choice,” Young took things in stride and related a story not many know about when he thought his days at Sherman were finished.
“The first guy who called and offered me a job was Bob Brown (former Denison athletic director and football coach),” Young said. “It’s one thing I’ll always remember and deeply appreciate.”
There were plenty of doubters after the 2003 season when Sherman finish 4-6 overall and 1-4 in district play to end a nine-year playoff run. One year later the Bearcats made the longest run in school history with a state semifinal appearance.
Sherman lost all five of its non-district games to start 2005 before responding with a 3-2 mark in district play to return to the post-season. The Bearcats were shocked one year later after an 8-2 record and 4-2 mark in District 5-4A but missed the playoffs.
Young’s six-year tenure as a head coach was a roller-coaster ride of sorts with losing records in the three odd-numbered years of 2003, ’05 and ’07 with winning marks in the three even-numbered years of 2004, ’06 and ’08. The Bearcats out-scored the opposition 35-24 the last three seasons and returned to the playoffs in 2008 after a two-year drought.
“One common denominator is our kids’ refusal to quit, and that doesn’t happen everywhere,” Young said. “I learned a lot from our players by the way they responded in that game. Texas is crazy for its football, but the number one thing for me is the way our support staff has prepared our kids for life outside of school and helping make them productive members of society.”
