Claude Webb and Larry Nickell coached side-by-side for several years at Texoma Christian. Now Webb is making room for Nickell to return to the bench at Melissa.
Webb is giving up his duties as girls basketball coach in order to concentrate on his new job as Melissa’s girls athletic director. Nickell will take over as Lady Cardinals coach.
“Our relationship goes all the way back to our years at Austin College,” Webb said. “He is a great coach, and an outstanding upper level math and science teacher.”
Last month, the Melissa Independent School District board of trustees agreed to split the boys and girls athletic programs, and Webb was named girls athletic director.
At the time, he said, he began to restructure the girls program and had hopes of hiring another coach.
On Monday, the board approved Nickell as a teacher/coach. In addition to coaching girls varsity basketball, Nickell will coach junior high volleyball and assist with varsity softball.
Webb will continue to assist with the varsity girls.
“My efforts can now be better served in developing our overall athletic program,” Webb said, “which includes developing an age-group program for our elementary kids and strengthening our junior high.”
The two go back to 1977, when Nickell was a basketball player and Webb a swimmer at Austin College.
They actually never coached together until 2003, when Texoma Christian began varsity competition with Webb as AD and girls coach and Nickell as boys coach.
In 2007, Webb accepted the coaching job at Melissa and Nickell left for an adjunct faculty position at AC. Last year, Nickell pursued business interests while continuing to practice dentistry, which he has been able to do throughout his teaching and coaching career.
Both coaches have children in school. One of Webb’s sons, Hondo, will be a junior this fall, and son Jackson and daughter Katie will enter eighth and seventh grade respectively.
Nickell will have the opportunity to coach his daughter and youngest child, Jacqui, who will be a junior. Not only that, but one of his four older sons, J.K. Nickell, will join him this fall as an assistant coach.
“The opportunity to coach with J.K. will be extra special,” Nickell said, “because I didn’t get a chance to coach him.”
