Carter hired former Rialto and Riverside North boys basketball coach Anthony Jones earlier this month for its open boys basketball position. Jones, a health teacher, was an assistant at Eisenhower in 2001-03 before coaching the Knights from 2004-07 and North from 2008-11.

Jones, who led North to an 19-11 record and a berth in the CIF-SS Division 2A quarterfinals this past season, will take over a Lion program that went 4-20 overall last season with a 3-11 record in the San Andreas League. Carter has never made the playoffs in its seven-year history.

Just got an e-mail from Los Osos principal Chris Hollister saying that assistant coach Jeff Paul was named the interim coach of the Grizzly baseball team, a position that he’ll assume for the remainder of this season.

Paul was chosen after a meeting this morning on campus between Hollister, coaches, players and parents after the removal of Dominick Copas as head coach last week. According to a source, Copas was suspended and removed after a profane voicemail to a player left in the fall surfaced and was reported to administration.

The Yucaipa High School head football coaching position, which opened up in early February when John Hallenbeck was removed, is inching closer to being filled.

Thunderbirds athletic director Mark Anderson indicated that a series of interviews will be held April 23, with a possible recommendation coming from them.

“We have been patient with the process to make sure that we get the best possible candidates,” Anderson said. “We’ll sit down April 23 and see where we are at.”

Yucaipa also is looking for a new girls basketball coach, as Anna Collins stepped down following the season. Collins, a newlywed, was teaching in Grand Terrace and the commute to Yucaipa was too much according to Anderson.

Harold Strauss might not be done as football coach at Colton High School after all.

Strauss, who retired this past season to take on full-time duties as athletic director, is thinking seriously about throwing his hat back in the ring as football coach after issues arose in the hiring of his successor.

“We had 21 applicants, but we just laid off 141 teachers as a school district,” Strauss said. “It’s hard to hire a coach to a teaching position and justify it with that going on. It just might not be the right time to leave this position.”

The Colton Unified School District is redrafting the ad for the position. Depending on the verbiage of the position, Strauss said he’s “70-30″ in favor of reapplying.

“I think I would have to reapply because the job has already been flown, but I don’t know for sure,” Strauss said. “Depending on what the school district releases, I’m interested in coming back. The new school opens in the fall of 2011 and when that happens, teaching jobs will come back and hopefully that will make things easier. But it might be a situation where an extra year or two is necessary.”

One of the more notable basketball coaches in the county is stepping down, as Redlands boys basketball coach Brad Scott announced his retirement Wednesday night at the Terriers’ postseason banquet. Scott took over the Terriers in 2001 and has won at least 20 games a season for the past seven seasons, including a 20-7 mark this past season.

Kevin Trudgeon’s article in the Daily Facts can be accessed here. In working with Scott the last three seasons, I always found him to be extremely accessible and friendly, win or lose. The next coach at Redlands will definitely have some sizable shoes to fit into.

As far as longtime Victor Valley coach Leland Eudy was concerned, it was time for a change. The 56-year-old Eudy, who has been coaching in the High Desert since 1974, retired from coaching after the Jackrabbits’ season-ending loss to Ridgecrest Burroughs Nov. 13.

Eudy had spent 35 years alternating between Victor Valley High School and Victor Valley College, spending 19 seasons as head coach of the Jackrabbits over three stints. Eudy started his most recent stint at VVHS in 2000, also heading the Jackrabbits from 1983-87 and 1990-93.

“It’s time for a younger man with new ideas to come in here,” Eudy said. “I told the players before the season that this would be my last season and wanted to keep it quiet besides that. I just came to the conclusion that this school and program needed a shot in the arm and some new ideas.”

Eudy gave Victor Valley a shot in the arm in his final season. While the Jackrabbits were eliminated from the playoffs in the finale to Burroughs, but accumulated a 7-3 record and won two rivalry games — The Bell Game over Apple Valley and The Axe against Barstow.

Eudy, who will remain at VVHS as a social studies teacher, has no regrets about leaving coaching.
“I’ve been blessed with a great life and have met a ton of people through coaching,” Eudy said. “These past 35 years have given me lots of great memories and lots of lasting relationships. I’m lucky to have experienced as much as I have.”

Former San Bernardino High School defensive assistant coach Jeff Bees was in front of the San Bernardino Unified School District School Board on Tuesday night, trying to figure out why he was fired as a volunteer assistant coach last Wednesday.

Bees, a 1989 Cajon High School graduate, was removed due to allegations of depriving kids of water and because of derogatory remarks — both charges that Bees, 37, denied.

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