Tim Buchanan and Steve Wood, architects behind the past 10 Aledo state football championships, are retiring. The announcement came last Friday morning, Jan. 27, a day I thought was going to be spent in my pajamas getting some writing done — or lounging on the sofa with the TV clicker to see if “That ‘90s Show” is any good.
It isn’t, but I found that out late Friday night as my day suddenly got busy. I changed from pajamas to blue jeans and skedaddled to the Aledo indoor practice facility for a press conference. Well, I actually wasn’t in that big a hurry as my good friend and Aledo School District public relations guru Mercedes Meyer had notified me earlier that morning.
By the way, the football program — and I suspect the overall sports program — will continue to be great. We’ll get to more on that in a minute.
Normally, a trip to visit with Buchanan — or Buc most call him — is something I look forward to. In our weekly visits during this football season, my first to cover the team from start to finish, our conversations ranged from how his defense was going to deal with the opposing offense, or vice-versa, to if politicians spent as much time doing their jobs as they do fighting we might actually get some things fixed in this country.
But this day had a little bittersweet feeling to it. This visit was not to talk football — we’d done that earlier in the week in reflecting on the season. This was a farewell visit, at least farewell as far as football goes.
Two of the finest men I’ve ever known, Buc and Steve, were saying goodbye to their careers.
I mentioned how visiting with Buc was always a pleasure and the conversations would often wander (always wrapping up with football, though — we are professionals, after all), likewise for Steve. I didn’t cover any of his teams for an entire season like I did Buc, but the times I had to visit with Steve were always enjoyable and enlightening.
After all, being professional doesn’t mean you can’t also enjoy a great conversation with a friend. I do consider both of these guys friends.
I could go into the plethora of wins they had (Buc finished with 281 in 25 seasons, Wood accumulated 75 in five seasons) and the number of state titles they accumulated (Buc has eight, Wood three), but anyone who knows the shape of a football is fully aware of that. I know from experience their reputation extends far beyond the borders of Texas as when I mentioned Aledo football when I lived in Colorado, a lot of folks had definitely heard of the Bearcats.
I remember even telling someone one time while we lived there that Aledo has won more playoff games in AT&T Stadium than the Cowboys have played there. They responded, “Oh, yeah, I’m not surprised.”
But what separates coaches such as Buc and Steve from many is how they truly develop a relationship with their players and the community. They ran a program that former Bearcats coast to coast take pride in for the rest of their lives. A lot of schools claim to have their “nation,” but with programs such as Aledo it is true.
From big-time college football to one of the most popular sports talk radio stations in the U.S to major award-winning musicians (that “Fancy Like” song from Chil’s commercials, Aledo alums wrote that), Bearcat imprints are everywhere.
No, the football program didn’t create all of that, but a winning and successful culture did. And there is no more successful culture on this planet than Aledo football. It is the cornerstone of a successful overall sports program that is second to none.
And who have been the athletic directors at Aledo for the past 30 years? Buchanan and Wood. Buc had the job from 1993-2018 and Wood took over from 2019 until his recent retirement. During that time Aledo also won state championships in baseball, softball and golf, along with state finals appearances from volleyball and boys and girls soccer. This isn’t counting individual state championships in a variety of sports, none more notable than current LPGA golfer Cheyenne Knight.
In 2013-14 Aledo became the only team ever to win football, baseball and softball state championships in the same school year.
Obviously, the coaches of those respective programs deserve the ultimate credit, but the point is winning begats winning. And when you’ve got two of the best doing the hiring of other coaches, well, you see what you get with Aledo as the example.
Long-time assistant coach Robby Jones will guide the Bearcats football program going forward. As Buchanan noted, it’s time for him to start building his own legend.
Jones has an idea of what it’s like to follow one of the all-time greats. His father, Jerry (not the bozo with the Cowboys), followed G.A. Moore at both Celina and Pilot on his own way to winning more than 200 games in a quarter century as a head coach.
The Bearcats are in great hands with Robby, who had been the offensive coordinator since 2009. In that tenure, the Bearcats averaged a mind-boggling 49 points per game, including averaging 45 in the playoffs.
It was Jones who was the offensive mastermind behind the highest scoring offense in history at any level. The 2013 Bearcats are the only team in history to score more than 1,000 points in a season, outscoring their opponents 1,023 to 140 (Wood was defensive coordinator that season).
In announcing the turning over of the reins to Jones, Buchanan called him the best coach on the staff, including himself. They just don’t come any better than that concerning compliments.
When Wood stepped in to replace Buchanan in 2014, the Bearcats didn’t skip a beat, going 15-1 and winning state. While that would normally be one whale of a prediction for any other coach, this is Aledo and Jones is going to be leading a team that should certainly enter next season as the favorites to capture title No. 12.
So, Buc moves on to enjoy hunting and being outdoors more, and Steve will hone his golf game. Both will have more time for family.
And both will always be Bearcats, with another family member building on that same foundation.
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