By T. Scott Boatright
After one year, the Randy Carlisle era for Simsboro High School boys basketball has come to an end.
Simsboro Principal Lacey Holcomb confirmed Monday evening that Carlisle turned in his resignation late last week and that she has started a search for a new coach for the Tigers.
“He said he was resigning to pursue some other career opportunities,” Holcomb said.
Holcomb said that while she has no set timeline for trying to find a replacement for Carlisle, she also admitted the sooner a replacement is found, the better.
“I would like to have somebody in place by summer to be able to practice with the boys, but we’ll just kind of see how the process goes and where it leads us,” Holcomb said.
Carlisle, who graduated from East Texas Baptist College and coached for 17 years in Texas before returning to his native Louisiana, has a career coaching record of 948-257.
Before taking over the Tigers last year Carlisle had directed teams to 10 state championships, including seven in basketball, with 11 of his squads advancing to a state title game. He had led his teams to 27 district titles in 29 years of coaching and has been named a Coach of the Year honors either at the district or state level 26 times.
But while the Simsboro boys team made a late push to reach the Division V Select School playoffs last year, the Tigers limped into the postseason and finished the season at 14-15 after having won two straight previous state championships.
The Tigers defeated Hackberry in the first round of the playoffs in March before falling to Anacoco in the second round.
Carlisle took over the departure of Josh Brown, who had coached the Tigers for seven seasons and guided Simsboro to four state titles over the previous five seasons. But late last spring Brown took over as head coach at Claiborne Christian, where his wife was teaching and his children were attending school.
In his two seasons as Anacoco’s head coach before taking over at Simsboro, Carlisle coached that team to a record of 67-14, with the Indians advancing to the Class B state semifinals last year and the state title game in 2021, when they lost 56-53 to Simsboro.
Simsboro athletics director Matt Herring, who took over as head coach of the Lady Tigers girls basketball program late last spring, had previously also coached boys basketball at Kilbourne High School, and Holcomb said he would be considered should he show interest in the position.
“If he ends up interested in the boys’ position, then I would absolutely consider him for that,” Holcomb said. “He’s done a lot of the school and the girls basketball program and I would absolutely consider him for it.”
Holcomb said the key is to not rush finding the right coach to lead the Tigers into the future.
“We’ve got a good group of boys coming up and I just really want to find the right person to develop their talent,” Holcomb said. “Holcomb said any interested coaches can contact her at (318) 247-6265 or via email at lacey.holcomb@lincolnschools.
