On Monday morning, the BHS Football community gathered to hear the sad news of the resignation of Beaver Head Football Coach, Joey Thomas.
“It’s time for me to move on to the next chapter and the next challenge in my life,” Thomas told KING 5 news.
Thomas is looking into a few options that will determine the next chapter which could include coaching college and high school football at another location.
Thomas entered the position with little prior coaching experience in 2011, and according to BHS athletic director Carrie Burr, “turned a struggling program on and off the field into a State-contending powerhouse in just 5 years.”
Burr recaps the successes of Coach Thomas over his time at BHS in the heartfelt words below:
In the last two seasons, his program went 12-4 in Metro, won two division titles, advanced to the State tournament, and most importantly this season had a team GPA of 3.0.
What sets Coach Thomas above the rest is his ability and drive to further his student-athlete’s education and playing experience. From the moment he took over he instilled mandatory study halls, found tutorial support for his players, and helped send 27 student-athletes to college.
Coach Thomas is a visionary. His strength is being able to ignore the naysayers and defy what is possible. I am beyond grateful for what he has done for our football program, the league, and the Ballard community.
Coach Thomas clearly has a special place in his heart for the BHS community and has released the following message:
I’d like to thank everyone who helped me make the transition from playing ball to coaching.
I want to thank Keven Wynkoop, Carrie Burr and all of Ballard HS for making me their head coach. I want to thank the community, parents, players (past and present) for the memories.
When we started this journey, Ballard Football had won three games in three years. I was charged with “…putting the BOOM back in Ballard Football.” What we accomplished together goes far beyond wins and losses. We changed the lives of numerous young men and the entire community. We can walk away feeling good, knowing we did that.
To my players: It doesn’t matter what color polo I wear or what level I choose to coach at-I will always be your coach and I’ll be here to help and support you anyway possible. I don’t know what’s next for me but the time we spent together has been priceless. Remember…it’s about more than playing football; it’s about life and positively impacting others.
Whatever his next chapter has in store, it is clear that Coach Thomas has made a huge impact on BHS Football and will surely be missed by the entire school community.
Images courtesy of KING 5 News and BHS Athletics.
