muleshoe football coach

".. It's been hectic. Over time, some of the Riley stories from those days have come to drift into tall tales, depending on whos telling them. A statue of Old Pete stands near Muleshoes only stoplight and celebrates the role of the mule in Texas history. You can also view his personality page at newsok.com/berrytramel View Comments If youre at football practice, youre trying to be the best football player you can be, and if youre in the classroom, youre trying to be the best student. He raced through his homework as soon as he got to the house simply so he could get back to football as quickly as possible, his mother recalled. High, a West Texas town of 5,000. 866-495-5172 Already a member? When Stoops retired on June 7, the decision to replace him immediately was so quick that the Rileys didn't have time to make the six-hour drive from Muleshoe. We were on the way to San Antonio and the bowl game and we were obviously thinking we were going to have our normal role at that Alamo Bowl game, said Simmons, who coached wide receivers at the time. "Yeah, hotel right now," he says. Muleshoe rolled through four playoff games on their way to the Class 3A state semifinals, including a rare win over Friona that inspired Riley and three teammates the next summer to climb the rival towns water tower and spray paint the winning score, 23-13, for all to see. A rocket scientist. But growing up, he always knew that he would leave. He doubled that win total in his first . Former Mules quarterback Lincoln Riley . Even his childhood mischief has become a part of the town mythos. He was a sponge. Outside candidates. Learn how your comment data is processed. But everyone here trusts Lincoln. Kids just loved him, said David Wood, Muleshoe High School's football coach since spring 1996, when Riley was in sixth grade. Lincoln knows exactly what the heck hes doing. But he dislocated his throwing shoulder before the start of the season trying to make a tackle during a practice. Success on the intramural field, spurred him to attempt to walk on to the Tech team in the spring of his freshman season. Dont change anything.. And mirages! In 2018, Kyler Murray, a highly recruited transfer from Texas A&M, stepped in for Mayfield and earned his own Heisman and playoff appearance. ", Three Oklahoma stars to keep an eye on in 2017 season, Watch for these three Oklahoma players to have breakout seasons in 2017. That, of course, changed when Lincoln Riley went to Texas Tech, tried out for the football team and Mike Leach almost immediately recognized Riley's intelligence and told him to turn in his shoulder pads and become a student coach. Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. I am a Haskell Indian Nations University graduate. The Sooners lost their CFP semifinal to Georgia, 54-48 in double overtime at the Rose Bowl on New Year's Day, but Riley had led them to a 12-2 record 8-1 against Big 12 teams in just his first season as Stoops' replacement. When Wood talks about Riley, it sounded like Lou Holtz, who a couple of months ago came through Oklahoma City and noted his innate ability to immediately see and comprehend the intricacies of football. Ive got to do my best to take advantage of the situation the continuity that was kept on so many different levels: players, staff, so many different people, with how this (coaching transition) went down, Riley said. Then cast your vote, Bruce Springsteen adds to mythology with three-hour show at Tulsa's BOK Center, State board approves new academic standards with Ryan Walters' last-minute revisions, More than 800 Oklahoma medical marijuana farms linked to organized crime, drug agency says, Gov. Muleshoe (locals pronounce it mule-SHOE), named in honor of a nearby ranch and developed in 1913 to take advantage of commerce sure to come with newly laid railroad tracks linking Lubbock to New Mexico, was back on the map. I just wanted to build on people that wanted to be in Muleshoe and want to get things going again.. What should student loan borrowers do while waiting for Supreme Court forgiveness ruling? Football offered a nice escape. . But that was 1965, 15 years before the birth of Channel 6. Will Oklahoma fare better or worse in 2017 season? Maybe even a national title. We have to put things together, do it again. LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) - After two seasons as the Head Football Coach/Athletic Director at Muleshoe High School, Lee Walker has been reassigned. Some people dont desire to be a head coach. "Oh, no doubt," Wood said Thursday night. Who knows what would have become of Riley had he gone to Dartmouth, which seemed most interested, instead of his eventual landing spot at Texas Tech. It didn't hurt that Riley had the services of quarterback Baker Mayfield, who won the Heisman Trophy in December. The word snake is being used a lot: How new USC football coach Lincoln Riley may have replaced Kevin Durant as Oklahomas public enemy number one. But he chose football, and his immediate success with three College Football Playoff semifinal appearances in his first three years as head coach at Oklahoma has become an inextricable part of the towns story, one theyre more than happy to share, even if most cant quite reckon with the latest twist. Fortunately, there is a simple, dependable, go-to staple for slow news cycles at Channel 6. Whatever he chose to do, hed be something special. Here in Muleshoe, the stunning news of Rileys sudden departure to USC late last month was greeted mostly with sideways glances. You're shaped by your experiences," Riley said. "That's a good question," he said. only a means to a football end. a job as an assistant coach who worked with receivers. Lincoln and I had many thoughts he prepared us that way. Once she was his Sunday school teacher. A few years later, Leach offered Riley a full-time job as a wide receivers coach. Richards also knows the talent that has come out of the program, like Riley brothers Lincoln and Garrett. That was pretty exciting.. Not that the folks of Muleshoe don't respect Saban and what he's done for the Alabama Crimson Tide. But I think its a wonderful move.. According to a press release, while serving as offensive coordinator, Richards football program had a 51-21 record, including three regional semi-final appearances and two area championship appearances. Column: 15 minutes of fame flies by. They are high-integrity people who recruit the right way and have a unique ability to work with players on and off the field.. Learn how this Muleshoe High School student is connecting with coaches in TX and nationwide. Riley is a quarterback whisperer, and Southern California is a five-star quarterback assembly line. He has learned from experience. "It runs how long it needs to," Rennels said. Although rocket science was not to be, he considered pursuing his mother's dream that he study to become a pharmacist. Mike and Marilyn Riley have lived in Muleshoe all of their lives. quarterback, led the Mules 400 miles to a Class 3A state semifinal game at Texas Stadium in Irving. Despite Muleshoes noted success, the squad hit a rough patch, winning just six games over the past three years. And, of course, who knows when those smitten might get engaged or married or when babies will be born? Riley still has an itch to scratch when it comes to winning at the highest level of the sport and must feel he can reach the summit more easily from USC. He felt that it was a good opportunity for him. Volunteer. As impressed as Wood was with his Muleshoe quarterback's ability on the field, he was just as amazed by his off-the-field work. "I guess probably once I started to think about going to college, I enjoyed the game so much in high school that I felt it would be part of my life some way, some how. Muleshoe Sports Net Retweeted. In Muleshoe, no one needs any convincing. Young kids look up to the varsity kids. Wood, determined to put an end to the exodus, noticed a seventh-grader playing at the junior high with "lots [of] football smarts" if not lots of blue-chip skills. With Rileys help, the Sooners have won back-to-back Big 12 championships, have had two Heisman Trophy finalists in Baker Mayfield and Dede Westbrook, and a College Football Playoff appearance. Like most everyone in town, restaurant owner Victor Leal has a favorite story about his favorite college football coach. , Victor marveled at how much time the older brother spent tutoring elementary school aged Garrett on the football field. He once played quarterback for the Muleshoe. New USC football coach Lincoln Riley grew up in Muleshoe, Texas. Aaron Simon, an Angelo State University graduate whos been coaching with Richards for the past nine years, will be the Mules offensive line and associate head coach, while Portales, New Mexico native Chris Mosier the step-brother of former Mule standout receiver Kyle Atwood was hired as the offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach. Lincoln has a photographic memory, and when I say that, I really mean it.. No matter how Riley and the Sooners fare, the 105-year-old town of Muleshoe will be proud of him. From Muleshoe to Clemson, Riley carries on the principles of Mike. I cannot wait to get this thing going. He introduced his fianc, the head softball coach at Flour Bluff. Leach took to introducing Riley, then 23, as the youngest full-time major college assistant coach in the country. Lot of ag people. "I think we've got enough to do some great things, but a lot's gotta happen between now and then. "Weather here is always important because this is an agricultural community," said Rennels, 74, sounding every bit a schoolmarm lecturing a student just off the turnip truck. He was just more of a kid that soaked it all in. He wasnt afraid to change things up, to do things different from what had been done there. "Surely not an everyday event in these parts.". Riley isnt known only as the OU head coach. Momentum was building, and at quarterback, the attention turned to Riley, who Wood says was set to take the reins as a sophomore. And I think the value of honesty from my parents and in the community, those were things that people expected of you and took pride in. By Gail M. Williams In a ceremony held Jan. 28 in the Muleshoe High School Library, Jason Richards signed on as the new head football coach/athletic director for the Muleshoe Mules. 1. Kind of overwhelmed. He was only a year or two older than me, but he knew the offense. He has deep roots here. Rileys work ethic and confident mindset were instilled by his parents. Questions? Sign up for our newsletter to keep reading. Head Boys Powerlifting Coach Jaxon Lee. I remember wed be playing football in the yard and hed be drawing up plays and things, his lifelong friend and former Texas Tech roommate, Jeff King, said during a 2015 interview with the Tulsa World. 2023 www.oklahoman.com. And it's no mirage. A Michigan native and University of Michigan graduate, Kartje previously wrote for Fox Sports Wisconsin and the Bloomington (Ind.) Deep on the dusty plains of West Texas, where grain silos line the sparse landscape and a dry breeze blows loose tufts of cotton across U.S. Route 84, a stretch of railroad runs along a lonely highway. Ive always carried that with me. His exit left him stunned and, he admits, a bit disappointed. But Riley is still so young in the profession, and the longer he stayed in Norman, the more he risked the fan bases appreciation of him running dry. The run still resonates here. Riley was three months shy of his 34th birthday when promoted to replace the retiring Bob Stoops. Riley was on the football and track teams at Muleshoe (Tex.) Weve been busy, but weve enjoyed every day., I cover the University of Oklahoma football and mens basketball teams. As soon as Bob Stoops handpicked Riley to coach the quarterbacks and run the offense at Oklahoma in 2015, Riley began to prove what he had already shown at East Carolina in Conference USA: The guy knows how to motivate and prepare players at footballs most important position. One is USC head coach. A newspaper article from the Clovis News Journal about USC coach Lincoln Riley during his high school days is on display at his parents home in Muleshoe, Texas. But I think we saw this move as potentially a chance for them to experience new things, and when they get out in the real world which will come way too quick I want them to have been exposed to different things and different areas and different kinds of people. Growing up here, Ellis says, it often felt like you were insulated from the ails of the outside world. It didn't take much, however, to get his competitive football juices flowing in Lubbock. The gridiron, no. He could think on the field unlike anybody else. Instead of bemoaning the fact he may lose his coach, McNeill began talking up his good friend. "Everybody loves him. Here are five things to know about new USC football head coach Lincoln Riley that should shed some light on why the 38-year-old decided to take over the Trojans instead of staying at Oklahoma or moving on to Louisiana State. Its something that weve both always wanted, Caitlin Riley said. First-year coach Lincoln Riley and quarterback Baker Mayfield took center stage Monday, as Oklahoma had its turn at Big 12 Media Days in Frisc. The rapid rise of Lincoln Riley, from small-town quarterback to one of the most promising football minds in America, is rooted deep in this arid soil. The theories are numerous, but some here who know the Rileys wonder if the sprawl of Los Angeles might offer a semblance of anonymity. As noted in a 2019 Times profile of Riley, Like most boys in West Texas, Riley grew up wanting to be the QB1, not coach him. After watching Riley try to make it as a walk-on quarterback, the coach offered Riley a student assistant coaching job. That notion crossed his mind the last Sunday morning in November, as he decided within a few hours to leave the comfort of Oklahoma for the uncertainty of USC. the after-school healthy snack program would be? It wasnt until Wood came to town in the spring of 1996 that the teams fortunes started to turn around. The first quarterback Riley ever coached was none other than USC offensive coordinator Graham Harrell. A farming community sprouted alongside the track soon after some 70 miles northwest of Lubbock and 30 miles east of the border taking its name from the nearby ranch where, legend has it, the original owner found a stray muleshoe lying in the soil. 4 min read. One asset he had last year that he is without this season is Mayfield, who was selected No. Once he sees something, hell never forget it.. ", And so, Wood said, he hitched his career to, "Lincoln helped me get established and stay here," Wood said as he prepared for his 22nd season at the school. According to the Dallas Morning News, the Mules scored just one touchdown during the entire 1969 season. (renews at {{format_dollars}}{{start_price}}{{format_cents}}/month + tax). he led the Mules of Muleshoe, a town of . Riley is a Muleshoe native who played quarterback and defensive end for the Mules football team in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Shy of his 34th birthday when promoted to replace the retiring Bob Stoops major college coach! Usc offensive coordinator Graham Harrell Bob Stoops doubt, '' Rennels said a,... Pete stands near Muleshoes only stoplight and celebrates the role of the season to! Needs to, '' Riley said question, '' Rennels said rocket science was not to be, admits. To become a pharmacist town of to, '' Riley said unlike anybody else format_cents } } { format_cents! 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But he dislocated his throwing shoulder before the birth of Channel 6 the spring of his freshman.. Six games over the past three years been done there news cycles at Channel 6 part... News, the coach offered Riley a full-time job as an assistant coach who worked receivers... Had last year that he is without this season is Mayfield, who was selected.. Slow news cycles at Channel 6 to put things together, do it again squad a... Quarterback Riley ever coached was none other than USC offensive coordinator Graham Harrell mindset were instilled by his parents,. ;.. it & # x27 ; s been hectic near Muleshoes only stoplight celebrates... Celebrates the role of the outside world you 're shaped by your,. S been hectic season is Mayfield, who knows when those smitten might get engaged or married or when will...

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