By ROY HESS | The Brownsville Herald
The Lopez Lobos have a new head football coach/athletic coordinator and he’s a local product.
Armando Gutierrez, a middle-school athletic coordinator in Denton, was approved for the position at Lopez on Monday night by the Brownsville ISD Board of Trustees.
Prior to his one-year stint as an athletic coordinator/teacher at Calhoun Middle School in Denton ISD, Gutierrez was the head football coach at Dallas Sunset, a Class 5A high school, from 2012-16.
Gutierrez, who graduated from Hanna approximately 20 years ago, replaces Jason Starkey, who stepped down in mid-February 2018 to enter private business and spend more time with his family after guiding the Lobos to 15 wins and back-to-back playoff appearances during the past two seasons.
The new coach received a standard one-year contract with BISD.
The Lobos begin workouts for the 2018 season next Monday. Gutierrez is expected to report to his new job this week.
Gilbert Leal, BISD athletic director, said there are plenty of positives that prompted the search committee to recommend Gutierrez’s name to the BISD trustees.
“ First of all, we liked that he’s a Brownsville product, and secondly, we liked that he’s improved himself in his educational experience,” Leal said. “He’s a certified athletic coordinator. He’s experienced as a coach and teacher in a multi-school system (in Dallas).
“ Coach Gutierrez is a great communicator who is very energetic,” Leal added. “He has a plan (for what he wants to do). He’s motivated and extremely well-organized.
“ He’s coming home.”
BISD school board member Joe Rodriguez was asked about the trustees’ approval of the hiring and said, “Coach Gutierrez has been high on the list for some time (during the search for a new Lopez coach). The trustees weren’t involved in the search process, but I can tell you he was impressive to the people who did the interviewing. He comes very well-vetted, I’ll tell you that.”
Gutierrez has 14 years of experience as a teacher and coach, including six years as an administrator. He will be returning to Brownsville from his current home in Argyle.
Gutierrez graduated from Texas A&M University-Kingsville with a degree in kinesiology in 2005 and earned a master’s degree in educational administration from the University of North Texas in 2010.
Lopez principal Dahlia Aguilar was influential on the search committee that recommended Gutierrez’s hiring. When a comment regarding the new coach’s hiring was sought from her by calling Lopez on Tuesday, Aguilar, who was not on campus, sent word through a secretary that she was on FMLA leave and unavailable. She referred all questions to Leal.
Gutierrez did not return phone and text messages seeking comment.