The Texas African-American Coaches Association 23rd Annual Hall of Honors Banquet was held July 30 at the Radisson Astrodome Hotel, 8686 Kirby in Houston, Texas. The association’s stated mission is first the historical preservation of Texas athletics that must view and include the many contributions by the unheralded African-American coaches during the time of segregation. It is also to have the history books of the Texas High School Coaches Association to include the Prairie View Interscholastic League (nee Texas Interscholastic League) coaches’ history.

Organizers say Texas African-American High School coaches should be acknowledged and honored for their many contributions to the history and development of team sports and their positive impact in the communities. The history of the Ex-Prairie View Interscholastic League (ExPVIL) began in 1939 when the League was organized as the supervising body of all athletic competition in Texas. The structure and format took the same as the University Interscholastic League (UIL) that governed all the White schools. The Association later began inducting coaches into the Hall of Honor. Since Black coaches could not participate until 1967, except as associate members without voting rights, certain rules prohibited Black coaches from being elected to the Hall of Honor. Jap Jones and John Tankersley searched the archives at Prairie View A&M University for records relating to athletic competition in the Prairie View Interscholastic League and aroused the interest of most of the ExPVIL coaches.

The group commissioned Jones to follow up on the reply, which meant making several trips to Prairie View, Houston and Austin. Finally, with the help of Johnny Peoples, who presented the concerns of Black coaches to the executive committee of the Texas High School Coaches Association, it became possible for Marion “Bull” Bates to be nominated, but not elected to the Hall of Honor in 1981. Before this, Billy Howard, a former coach in Jefferson, Texas came up with the idea of hosting a roast and toast to honor Ben Young, who is now deceased. The next day, the Ex-Prairie View Interscholastic League Coaches Association was formed with one main purpose, to get a Black ex-coach nominated and elected. In 1982, Andrew “Pat” Patterson became the first Black coach elected into the Texas High School Coaches Association Hall of Honor. The name was changed to the Texas African-American Coaches’ Association in 1991.
The change was made because the ExPVIL name was confusing to young Black coaches who believed that membership requirements included attending Prairie View A&M University. The requirements needed for induction into the Texas Hall of Honor are: should have been an active member of the Texas High School Coaches Association (THSCA) the following years; between 1930-1935 a member for any one year; 1935-1945 a member for any five years; 1930 to date, must have been a member for a minimum of 15 years from 1935; should have contributed to his/her association, should have contributed to his/her profession. Each region must submit a list of candidates to the executive vice president for membership verification and this list will be passed on to the committee for investigation.

Regions should consider the entire state, not just their region, when making nominations. Any individual coach can submit a coach for consideration for this honor by sending his/her letter to the executive vice president. Once a candidate’s name has been submitted, it will stay on file with the committee until he/she has made the Hall of Honor. The Master of Ceremonies at the 23rd banquet was Joe Booker, the assistant executive director of the Texas African American Coaches Association. The guest speaker at this event was Charley Casserly, senior vice president and general manager of Houston Texans’ Football Club who talked about how his career in coaching football started out. James “Bo” Humphery, the 3rd vice president of TAACA gave the presentation and introductions of the inductees. This year TAACA inducted 12 individuals to the 2002 Hall of Honors including from HISD: Oliver “Show” Brown, head track coach from Worthing High School; Theodius Lamar Bush, head track coach at Yates High School; Coger Coverson, Jr., track coach at Worthing High School (retired); Charles Green, head football coach at Wheatley High School; James H. Green, head football coach at Booker T. Washington (retired); Thomas E. Hendricks, Jr., head football coach at Phyllis Wheatley High School (retired); Freddie “Joe” Maura, head basketball coach at Worthing Senior High School (retired); Marvin Pettway, head football coach at Jeff Davis High School; Bennie Samual Swain, Sr., head basketball coach at Jones High School (retired); and the first woman to be inducted in the Hall of Honor, Carol DeVone Middleton, head basketball coach at Worthing Senior High School. Other district members were Hensley W. Sapenter, Jr., head football coach at Fox Tech High School in San Antonio Independent School District and Joe D. Washington, head football coach, Port Arthur Lincoln High School in Port Arthur Independent School District.

“We would like to thank Terry Williams, vice-president and general manager for H-E-B, for helping sponsor this event. We were having problems with sponsorship and H-E-B was the only company that helped sponsor this event. We would like to encourage coaches to join this organization,” said Joe Booker, assistant executive director of TAACA. “This organization was formed to work our way out of nonexistence and if they had recognized us, we would not need this organization,” stated Humphery, executive third vice president.

Bud Johnson, AAN&I’s living historian was asked to give an up close and personal opinion. Johnson stated, “I want to say first and foremost, that their contributions went far beyond the various sports they coached. In fact, we can sum it up by saying, guys like Oliver ‘Show’ Brown and Johnny Peoples should have been cloned, because this generation certainly could use them. We fail to realize it, but most of African-Americans’ leadership came from men who had been great coaches or were coached by great coaches. Usually our principals, who also were the leaders in our community, were coaches at first. Looking back, I now realize what amazing people our coaches and teachers were to teach kids self esteem, self worth, confidence and the kind of competitive spirit that made them successful. How can you convince a kid he’s as good, or better than anybody else when he or she is constantly handed down old uniforms to play in and very little equipment to train on. Well, those old coaches pulled it off. I think I would be prouder to be in the Black coaches Hall of Fame than any other, inasmuch as they somehow were able to instill dignity in the kids they touched, when they themselves, were constantly disrespected by the school districts they worked in.”

In addition to Booker and Humphery, other officers are Marion Jones, director; Johhny Peoples, president; Gerald Beal, first v.p.; Robert Thomas, second v.p.; Linder Johnson, fourth v.p.; Donald Grace, budget director; Arthur McCoy, secretary; Rosalind Winfrey, correspondence secretary; Goree Johnson, sponsor; Walter Day, historian and Hank Lawson, coordinator of sponsors.