Temple says farewell to team, hello to Clinton

Published 12:00 am Monday, June 11, 2001

[06/11/01] Saying it was just time, Warren Central coach Sam Temple ended his reign with the Vikings in a 20-minute meeting with players on Sunday.

The 30-year-old Vicksburg native ended almost a week of speculation by confirming that he has accepted the head coach position at Clinton High.

“I have told my guys since the day I got here that there is no one part of this program that is bigger than the other, not even me,” Temple said. “This program, even if I step out of it, will continue to churn.

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“If we have done things correctly, that theory is about to be proven.”

In just five years, Temple took his team from mediocrity to a Class 5A state championship and a national ranking. Now, he becomes a rival.

“It was a big shock when we first heard it,” junior-to-be Tyler DeRossette said. “He could tell by my reaction that I wasn’t too happy about it, but it’s a good move for him and his family.”

Vicksburg Warren athletics director Lum Wright Jr. said that the search for a new coach will begin as soon as he receives written notice of Temple’s intentions.

“It’s a big loss when you lose a coach of a state championship team,” said Wright, adding that interest in the job should be high.

Returning players and Temple said they wanted assistant coach Randy Broome to take over the job.

Broome, who joined Temple as the lone assistant four years ago, has expressed interest in the job.

Temple, who will begin work at Clinton in two weeks, will immediately hand the reins of his summer team to ex-Viking Brian Lane.

The Vikings return five starters from a team that finished 36-3 and ranked No. 4 by USA Today.

Temple, along with left-hander Taylor Tankersley, earned The Vicksburg Post’s top honors as coach and player of the year.

In just five years, Temple was 124-46 and had two 30-win seasons. The team had nothing to do with his leaving, he said.

“This decision had everything to do with my future, my wife’s future and my future family,” said Temple, whose wife Kristen will be working in Jackson. “We just felt like it was time for me to go.”

The Arrows are coming off a 15-17 season and a first-round playoff loss to Tupelo. Hugh Christian, who won 76 games in his five-year tenure at Clinton, resigned soon after the season ended.

Temple said the Clinton High administration sought him and that he never looked for another job.

Over the past three years, Temple has gotten several job offers from college and high school programs, but each year he turned those down to continue building WC.

“I felt like the program was where I wanted it to be,” said Temple, who added that the school’s first baseball title had no affect on his decision. “… I told them many are going to be angry, many are going to hate me and many will understand. That is all fine.”

From a 10-win first season in 1997, Temple’s Vikings went on to win four straight division titles and advance to the second round of the playoffs twice.

Because of redistricting, the Arrows will be in the same division as WC, Vicksburg and Forest Hill guaranteeing at least three meetings between the schools.

“I can’t wait until we play them,” DeRossette said.

“I wish him good luck over there, but when we play them, it’s not going to be good luck.”

Temple said there is plenty to be done to rebuild a Clinton program that made the state championship in 1998.

When he came to Warren Central, the program was on a downslide.

By working with players, parent sand administrators, Temple led the effort to make major renovations at Viking Field. They built a new outfield wall, a new press box, improved the dugouts and installed a new scoreboard, among other things.

He singled out Warren Central Principal Mack Douglas, assistant principal Bubba Hanks and Superintendent Donald Oakes for helping the program’s growth.

“The years that I have been here have been a challenge and a battle in some places,” Temple said. “A lot of the battles that were fought to get us to where we are now were not just fought by me, but by a lot of people.

“There’s a lot of people that know the trials and tribulations we’ve had to go through to get to this point. It wouldn’t do anybody any justice to sit here and elaborate on any of those. Everything now is positive.”

Temple would not give specifics about his battles, only saying, “There’s one aspect of my job here that I will simply have to say no comment.’ ”

No matter what happens, Temple said, the program will continue to flourish and he hopes to accomplish the same things in Clinton as he has at WC.

“I took a chance once after a lot of people told me don’t come here, that I wouldn’t be able to do the things I wanted to do here,” Temple said. “Eventually it worked out to where we wanted it to. I have to believe that it can be done again.

“… Leaving here after five years, I leave this program better than I found it. That was my biggest goal when I came here.”