By MARK MOLINA | Staff Writer
Success has been no stranger to Brownsville Veterans Memorial coach Larry Gibson, who once again was the main man pulling the strings for another big Chargers season.
Under Gibson’s tutelage, the Chargers posted a 32-7 season, won a District 32-5A title and went to the regional quarterfinals for the second time in three seasons.
For that reason, Gibson has been named The Brownsville Herald’s 2019 Coach of the Year.
Winning the honor is something Gibson has done before, and he said he enjoys it every time but not for reasons one might think.
“The honest truth is, this is the most rewarding thing I get to do,” he said. “This is the time I get to say thank you to so many kids. You don’t win coach of the year without having good kids. You don’t get coach of the year without having a great staff.”
Junior post and All-Metro MVP Damian Maldonado said he and the team would not be where they are without Gibson’s guidance.
“ He’s a great coach and probably one of the best I ever played for,” Maldonado said. “His experience on and off the court helps all of us. His basketball IQ is out of this gym. He helped me develop as a player. He let me go through my runs and go through my slumps. That helped me bring up the team and become what I am today.”
Meanwhile, the Brownsville Veterans Memorial basketball staff took home district championships on the freshman light, freshman dark, JV and varsity levels this season.
Gibson feels the group of coaches under him have lifted a weight off his chest and have made the season less stressful on him.
“Two years ago, you saw me standing up and doing all the yelling,” he said. “This year I was more chill. I had a staff that kept me under control. My staff did an excellent job this year. My assistant, Neil Schuster, came over from Lopez, and he did an excellent job; Cutberto Rodriguez, my JV coach, did a hell of a job. Rick Schuster, Neil’s dad, was my freshman dark coach and did an excellent job, and Charles Champion, my freshmen light coach … hell of a job. They all assisted me this year. … I really wish this could be the staff of the year because I had a hell of a staff this year.”