BY NATE KOTISSO | STAFF WRITER
SAN JUAN — The PSJA ISD school board selected Raymondville defensive coordinator David Brown II to be the new football coach and athletic coordinator at PSJA Memorial shortly after the midnight hour Friday morning.
Brown II was among five finalists.
Former Sharyland Pioneer coach Jason Wheeler, who wrapped up his first season as defensive coordinator at Elysian Fields this fall, was in the district’s top five. PSJA ISD also looked at Farrell Williams, who served as PSJA Memorial’s interim football coach and athletic coordinator. Williams was former coach Michael Uribe’s offensive coordinator.
The school board also considered two non-Valley candidates in Alvin running backs coach Ronnie Molina and Corpus Christi West Oso coach Pete Guajardo. Molina had been at Alvin since 2014. Guajardo led the West Oso Bears to two playoff appearances in 2017 and 2018, including a run to the third round of the playoffs this season.
Brown II was asleep when the school board made its decision, but his phone exploded with messages as soon as he woke up on Friday.
“Our family’s on vacation right now in California, so there’s a two-hour difference,” Brown II said. “Around six in the morning, I’m getting a bunch of text messages. All these different people have either texted me or congratulated me on Twitter before I could respond to the folks at PSJA. The hardest part is not being there to talk to the guys on campus.”
Brown II completed his first season as the defensive coordinator at Raymondville, his first high school position since he was the defensive coordinator at Venice High in Los Angeles in 1999. He helped the Bearkats to the outright District 16-4A DII title and a 9-2 season.
“They (Raymondville) had a good program before I got there,” Brown II said. “I was able to help in different aspects outside of football. You might have a senior, who’s grinding hard every day. Then you hear his story and you learn that he wasn’t always that way. The biggest thing, for me, was giving them a chance to develop and help them see that light at the end of the tunnel.”
Brown II also brings a wealth of college coaching experience to Alamo. He spent three seasons as a defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach for Texas A&M-Kingsville. He also coached safeties at Fresno State (2013) and Wyoming (2014).
“Coach Brown has strong leadership skills and will be a great motivator for our athletes,” PSJA ISD school board president Jesse Zambrano said. “We think he can establish not only a winning culture at PSJA Memorial, but a winning culture at the middle school and city levels. We’ll give him all the support he needs to establish a winning program.”
Brown II’s appointment ended a meeting that began nearly six hours earlier with the celebration of the 2018 PSJA High football team. The school board acknowledged the Bears after they captured their first district title since 2005.
“What made him an attractive candidate for us was what he brought to the table: his knowledge, passion and experience,” Superintendent Dr. Daniel King said. “We believe our students have the capacity to do well like our other PSJA schools.”
“If you look at the (PSJA) school district, the rest of the district is winning,” Brown II said. “Our kids eat the same food and drink the same water. It’s not a matter of not having talented athletes because they finished strong this season by winning four of their last five games. They didn’t quit on the previous staff, so there’s a desire to be good there.”
Brown II takes over for Uribe, who went 9-30 over four seasons as coach while also serving as the Wolverines’ athletic coordinator. Uribe was removed from both positions Nov. 27.