As if completing an undefeated season en route to a second consecutive state championship, DeSoto High School Athletic Director and Head Football Coach Claude Mathis got one more surprise when he was ushered into Chris Dyer Gymnasium under the guise of checking out water damage in the gym only to be presented with the Texas High School Coaches Association’s Coach of the Year Award in front of his staff, students, administrators and one very special guest--his mother.
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“This is the first time I think I’ve ever been speechless,” said Mathis in awe of the presentation and the surprise before noting the significance of the honor and the contribution of his student-athletes and staff in making one of his dreams a reality.
“As a kid growing up, playing football and, then going on to coach, you dream of stuff like this,” said Mathis. “To be here today, I am just so grateful to these kids, to my staff, to this community for supporting what we were trying to do this year.”
Mathis was presented the award by THSCA Executive Director Joe Martin and Glen West, the organization’s assistant executive director with the presenting sponsor Texas Farm Bureau Insurance.
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The award recognizes coaches for their exemplary achievements in their 2023-24 UIL seasons. DeSoto High School earned the 6A Division 2 State Championship and finished with a 16-0 season record.
“Coach Mathis led his team to excellence this past season, and we are thrilled that we can recognize his positive impact on his athletes and the school community,” said Joe Martin, the Executive Director of the THSCA.
“Texas has the best coaches in the nation, and the THSCA Coach of the Year program allows us to highlight the best of the best.” “Coach Mathis is a coach who wants to be more than an Xs and Os guy,” said Coach Kerry Sweeney, assistant coach at DeSoto High School. “He is a great academic coach who will collaborate and help any student to develop academic goals and help students with college admissions, grants, and various scholarship opportunities.”
THSCA members are offered a chance to nominate a head coach for the Coach of the Year award after the state championships in each sport. Nominations are reviewed and chosen by the THSCA Awards Committee, which is comprised of athletic directors representing all areas of Texas. Coach of the Year winners will also be recognized through social media, Texas Coach magazine, and at the general meeting at the 2024 THSCA Convention in San Antonio.