GREG HAYES Published 12:00 am, Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Already clad in a purple shirt, Brandon Faircloth showed he’s ready to get started with his new job, and the Port Neches-Groves board of trustees is happy to oblige.
The board approved a two-year contract for Faircloth to be the new high school head football coach and boys athletic director at PN-G by a 6-0 vote Tuesday.
“We have great times ahead of us,” said Faircloth, an assistant coach at Class 5A Odessa Permian for the last three seasons.
As offensive coordinator at Permian, Faircloth helped coach a team that averaged 42.6 points through 13 games last season, the last game a 28-22 loss to eventual Class 5A Division I state champion Allen.
Before providing that offensive mojo, however, Faircloth was the running backs coach at Highland Park from 2002-2005 and the freshman coach at Westlake from 2000-2001.
Faircloth takes over a team that won its first three games but lost its last six last season.
“The most important thing first of all is to start working hard and not get too concerned with too far down the road,” Faircloth said.
Faircloth, 31, will start his new job next week instead of the expected March 2 start date, PN-G Superintendent Lani Randall said.
“He has a very strong commitment,” Randall said.
Faircloth said he wants to install an offensive game plan different than the grind-it-out style familiar to so many PN-G fans.
“I like using multiple formations on offense,” Faircloth said. “And we will be 50-50 on pass and run. If we have to throw the ball 50 times to win a game, then we’ll pass 50 times.
“We’ll take what the defense gives us.”
Faircloth, Georgetown assistant Chuck Griffin and Calallen head coach/athletic director Philip Danaher were the three finalists for the position, Randall said.
The position drew 35 applicants. PN-G released the names of applicants only after it sought a ruling from the Texas Attorney General’s office on if the Texas Freedom of Information Act required it to do so.
Faircloth replaces former coach Matt Burnett, who coached 22 seasons at PN-G, the last 15 as head coach.
Burnett coached PN-G to a Class 4A state title game in 1999.
Randall said she is impressed with Faircloth’s vision for athletics – all of athletics, not just football.
“From elementary to high school, he is interested in our kids doing well in all sports,” she said. “He said that he believes we have bright kids with talent here.”
