[Grand Slam]

Just heard from the A.D. of pike county J.R. was hired today.
congrats !:1:

[phs1986]

Congrats!!!!!!

[#1TigerFan]

Just heard from the A.D. of pike county J.R. was hired today.
congrats !:1:

Yes, it is official. The worst kept secret in EKY sports is out!

all kidding aside, good luck J!

[J. R. VanHoose]

As everyone should now know, I have now been hired as the Head Girls Basketball Coach at Phelps High School. I have been reading the “rumor” thread since May, and as most of you should know by now, I am a regular on this site. Not so much to give my opinions, but just to see what is going on. In this post, however, I would like to take this opportunity to give some of my opinions and respond to some posts that are contained in this thread.

When the “rumors” of my going to Phelps made the papers back in May, I didn’t have a clue to why those had been printed. I had just been asked if I may have some interest in the job, no one offered it to me, or did I interview for it, they just sent out some “feelers” to see if I would be interested if the job came open. How coaching the boys team came up is beyond me? At no time during all of this, was the notion of coaching the boys team at Phelps ever mentioned. This aside, let me tell you why I took this job, so maybe some of you will stop speculating on this decision.

First, my wife played, Shawna, played basketball at Phelps and helped lead the girls team to a 15th Region All “A” Title in 1999. Most of her family and friends still live in the area, we go down that way quite often, and we both feel comfortable in that surrounding. I know a great many people there and feel quite comfortable in those surroundings. I will not be moving into a situation where I don’t know anyone in the community and it will ease the process of the move. An added bonus to this is Hornet’s Restaurant. It does have great food and I wouldn’t mind eating there everyday!!!

Second, Phelps, in my opinion, has a great tradition in both boy’s and girl’s basketball. The boys won the 15th Region Tournament in 1988, while the girls won the 15th Region Tournament in 1988 and 1989, were the 15th Region Runners-Up in 1990, and have a 15th Region All “A” Title from 1999. I feel that I can help bring success back to the girls program and build a foundation that will help keep in there for a long time. This is a job that I hope that I can retire from, by that I mean I am in this for the long haul, I would be perfectly happy if I could retire as the girls head coach at Phelps in 25-30 years. I do not believe in going to a job, staying a few years, and then leaving, I want to give back to the community that gave me a great wife. I have many different ideas that I would like to implement that I believe could help both high school basketball programs. I want to help start a junior pro league in Phelps for the boys and girls, teach them the fundamentals of the game at a younger age, and give them the skills that they will need to be successful when they get onto particular teams in high school. I am not sure if there are any basketball camps in the area in the summer, but I would also like to start my own personal camp that would take place in the summer for both girls and boys. I would stress fundamentals, give the kids another opportunity to learn and work with basketball, and give them what they need to be successful in life and basketball.

Third, it is just time for me to leave Paintsville. I have lived here all of my life, except for the time I was in college at Marshall, and I think it is time to move away and quit being known as the Mr. Basketball from Paintsville, who also happens to teach and coach there. I need to get out of that shadow, get on my own, and see what I can do away from the “safety” of Paintsville. Don’t get me wrong, I do not regret any of my time here, I love Paintsville, will always be proud to be from there, and always be prod to be a “Tiger.” I just have to see what I can do away from here.

Fourth, as for why I am coaching girls, it was an opportunity that presented itself and I jumped at the chance. I think it will be very exciting to coach the girls at Phelps and I see a lot of potential in those girls and I think that I can help them achieve their many goals. Will it be different than what I have done in the past, no it won’t. This reminds me of a quote from the late, great coach, Red Auerbach, “This is a simple game. The ball is round and the floor is smooth.” Different, no, this will not be any different. All kids, whatever level, must try and master the fundamentals that require their success at this game. My job will be to help them master those fundamentals and see that I can do everything in my power to help them achieve their maximum potential. On a side note, I am pleased to coach the girls because I would feel awkward coaching against someone that I consider one of the greatest high school coaches that has ever been in the state of Kentucky – Bill Mike Runyon. I have thought about how weird it would be to look down the opposing bench and see him down there coaching. I mean, I am coaching against the man I played for and who helped teach me a great deal about the game of basketball, and I am trying to beat him. How crazy would that be? I also, would not like to coach against any of the boys who I have been around for the last four years. For those of you that know me well, you know I have a brother who will be in middle school next year at Paintsville. How could I coach against him and his friends, who I have been around for years, when they get older? So you can see why this is the perfect situation for me!

What really gets me about situations like this are that I know some of you, and the ones I know are very supportive on here and in person. It is the ones who I don’t know that concern me. These people may be kind to your face, but on here they can hide behind a screen name and say whatever they want to about you, with nothing to loose. That is the first amendment at work, I understand that, but I hate nothing worse than people who are two-faced. That is why I joined this site under my real name; I wanted people to know what I thought and what I was about. But this situation reminds me of a quote from Coach Adolph Rupp, “To sit by and worry about criticism, which too often comes from the misinformed or from those incapable of passing judgment on an individual or a problem, is a waste of time.”

Having said that, I refuse to waste my time on any detractors that I may encounter, but I think that there are some items that have been discussed that need to be set straight:

Warlock – Yes, I asked Coach Runyon if I could be the JV coach last season, I wanted to get more coaching experience than what I was getting as just being a varsity assistant. Is there something wrong with wanting more experience? You should know, at least I hope, that getting actual head coaching experience, whether it is JV or junior high, is more beneficial than just being a varsity assistant coach. You have to learn how to make decisions in the course of the game as a head coach and not rely on others to do that for you. I think last year as JV coach helped me as far as game situations and dealing with everything else that comes with being a head coach. As for missing the JV game to watch a movie, I will clear up this for you as well. You know I attended Marshall University right? Well I had bought 2 tickets to the world premier of “We Are Marshall…” in Huntington that fall for $500 a piece as a Christmas present to my wife. The premier was scheduled for December 12, and until our basketball schedule came out, I was unaware that we would be playing Pikeville that night. I discussed the situation with Coach Runyon and he had no problem with me going to the premier and letting another assistant coach the JV team that night. I am sorry if you don’t accept the situation, but I don’t really care what you or anyone else thinks about it. I got to see the world premier of “We Are Marshall…” in Huntington (I mean how may movie world premiers come to this area). I got to meet Matthew McConaughey, Matthew Fox, Coach Red Dawson, and others. What made it even better was that my wife got to see Matthew McConaughey (who she absolutely adores) and got her picture with Matthew Fox. So. I am sorry if you don’t think I am ready to coach because I was trying to be a good husband and get my wife a great Christmas present and missed a JV game. Everyone involved with the decisions understood the circumstances and were fine with me missing the game.

Ukbadmamajamma – I am pretty sure that I am not getting this job, just because I was Mr. Basketball, coming up on some ten years ago. Hopefully, they are hiring me because they see great potential in my coaching abilities. This is one of the reasons I am leaving Paintsville, I am tried of being just known as 1998 Kentucky Mr. Basketball, I want to be known as something else, hopefully I will be remembered as a good and fair coach. I hope that you can understand that!

If anyone, has any other question, please ask them, I will answer it as best as I can.

[phs1986]

JR.... I have to say that is one EXCELLENT post!!!! :Thumbs:

[SE04]

As everyone should now know, I have now been hired as the Head Girls Basketball Coach at Phelps High School. I have been reading the “rumor” thread since May, and as most of you should know by now, I am a regular on this site. Not so much to give my opinions, but just to see what is going on. In this post, however, I would like to take this opportunity to give some of my opinions and respond to some posts that are contained in this thread.

When the “rumors” of my going to Phelps made the papers back in May, I didn’t have a clue to why those had been printed. I had just been asked if I may have some interest in the job, no one offered it to me, or did I interview for it, they just sent out some “feelers” to see if I would be interested if the job came open. How coaching the boys team came up is beyond me? At no time during all of this, was the notion of coaching the boys team at Phelps ever mentioned. This aside, let me tell you why I took this job, so maybe some of you will stop speculating on this decision.

First, my wife played, Shawna, played basketball at Phelps and helped lead the girls team to a 15th Region All “A” Title in 1999. Most of her family and friends still live in the area, we go down that way quite often, and we both feel comfortable in that surrounding. I know a great many people there and feel quite comfortable in those surroundings. I will not be moving into a situation where I don’t know anyone in the community and it will ease the process of the move. An added bonus to this is Hornet’s Restaurant. It does have great food and I wouldn’t mind eating there everyday!!!

Second, Phelps, in my opinion, has a great tradition in both boy’s and girl’s basketball. The boys won the 15th Region Tournament in 1988, while the girls won the 15th Region Tournament in 1988 and 1989, were the 15th Region Runners-Up in 1990, and have a 15th Region All “A” Title from 1999. I feel that I can help bring success back to the girls program and build a foundation that will help keep in there for a long time. This is a job that I hope that I can retire from, by that I mean I am in this for the long haul, I would be perfectly happy if I could retire as the girls head coach at Phelps in 25-30 years. I do not believe in going to a job, staying a few years, and then leaving, I want to give back to the community that gave me a great wife. I have many different ideas that I would like to implement that I believe could help both high school basketball programs. I want to help start a junior pro league in Phelps for the boys and girls, teach them the fundamentals of the game at a younger age, and give them the skills that they will need to be successful when they get onto particular teams in high school. I am not sure if there are any basketball camps in the area in the summer, but I would also like to start my own personal camp that would take place in the summer for both girls and boys. I would stress fundamentals, give the kids another opportunity to learn and work with basketball, and give them what they need to be successful in life and basketball.

Third, it is just time for me to leave Paintsville. I have lived here all of my life, except for the time I was in college at Marshall, and I think it is time to move away and quit being known as the Mr. Basketball from Paintsville, who also happens to teach and coach there. I need to get out of that shadow, get on my own, and see what I can do away from the “safety” of Paintsville. Don’t get me wrong, I do not regret any of my time here, I love Paintsville, will always be proud to be from there, and always be prod to be a “Tiger.” I just have to see what I can do away from here.

Fourth, as for why I am coaching girls, it was an opportunity that presented itself and I jumped at the chance. I think it will be very exciting to coach the girls at Phelps and I see a lot of potential in those girls and I think that I can help them achieve their many goals. Will it be different than what I have done in the past, no it won’t. This reminds me of a quote from the late, great coach, Red Auerbach, “This is a simple game. The ball is round and the floor is smooth.” Different, no, this will not be any different. All kids, whatever level, must try and master the fundamentals that require their success at this game. My job will be to help them master those fundamentals and see that I can do everything in my power to help them achieve their maximum potential. On a side note, I am pleased to coach the girls because I would feel awkward coaching against someone that I consider one of the greatest high school coaches that has ever been in the state of Kentucky – Bill Mike Runyon. I have thought about how weird it would be to look down the opposing bench and see him down there coaching. I mean, I am coaching against the man I played for and who helped teach me a great deal about the game of basketball, and I am trying to beat him. How crazy would that be? I also, would not like to coach against any of the boys who I have been around for the last four years. For those of you that know me well, you know I have a brother who will be in middle school next year at Paintsville. How could I coach against him and his friends, who I have been around for years, when they get older? So you can see why this is the perfect situation for me!

What really gets me about situations like this are that I know some of you, and the ones I know are very supportive on here and in person. It is the ones who I don’t know that concern me. These people may be kind to your face, but on here they can hide behind a screen name and say whatever they want to about you, with nothing to loose. That is the first amendment at work, I understand that, but I hate nothing worse than people who are two-faced. That is why I joined this site under my real name; I wanted people to know what I thought and what I was about. But this situation reminds me of a quote from Coach Adolph Rupp, “To sit by and worry about criticism, which too often comes from the misinformed or from those incapable of passing judgment on an individual or a problem, is a waste of time.”

Having said that, I refuse to waste my time on any detractors that I may encounter, but I think that there are some items that have been discussed that need to be set straight:

Warlock – Yes, I asked Coach Runyon if I could be the JV coach last season, I wanted to get more coaching experience than what I was getting as just being a varsity assistant. Is there something wrong with wanting more experience? You should know, at least I hope, that getting actual head coaching experience, whether it is JV or junior high, is more beneficial than just being a varsity assistant coach. You have to learn how to make decisions in the course of the game as a head coach and not rely on others to do that for you. I think last year as JV coach helped me as far as game situations and dealing with everything else that comes with being a head coach. As for missing the JV game to watch a movie, I will clear up this for you as well. You know I attended Marshall University right? Well I had bought 2 tickets to the world premier of “We Are Marshall…” in Huntington that fall for $500 a piece as a Christmas present to my wife. The premier was scheduled for December 12, and until our basketball schedule came out, I was unaware that we would be playing Pikeville that night. I discussed the situation with Coach Runyon and he had no problem with me going to the premier and letting another assistant coach the JV team that night. I am sorry if you don’t accept the situation, but I don’t really care what you or anyone else thinks about it. I got to see the world premier of “We Are Marshall…” in Huntington (I mean how may movie world premiers come to this area). I got to meet Matthew McConaughey, Matthew Fox, Coach Red Dawson, and others. What made it even better was that my wife got to see Matthew McConaughey (who she absolutely adores) and got her picture with Matthew Fox. So. I am sorry if you don’t think I am ready to coach because I was trying to be a good husband and get my wife a great Christmas present and missed a JV game. Everyone involved with the decisions understood the circumstances and were fine with me missing the game.

Ukbadmamajamma – I am pretty sure that I am not getting this job, just because I was Mr. Basketball, coming up on some ten years ago. Hopefully, they are hiring me because they see great potential in my coaching abilities. This is one of the reasons I am leaving Paintsville, I am tried of being just known as 1998 Kentucky Mr. Basketball, I want to be known as something else, hopefully I will be remembered as a good and fair coach. I hope that you can understand that!

If anyone, has any other question, please ask them, I will answer it as best as I can.

I have known you for a very long time, from watching you play with my cousin on the court when I was little to having you as a sub when I was in hs, and I must say that you have def. made some very good points. I wish you all the luck in the world at Phelps and personally can't wait to see what you can do with the program.

[sidelinecoach]

Very well said. My husband and I both went to Phelps and played ball there. Actually my husband is Shawna's cousin. Good Luck.

[eaglehoops]

Great post JR and I wish you all the luck in the world and I know you will turn Phelps in the right direction. Good luck to you and your wife and make us proud her in Johnson County. It will be fun following your team throughout the coming season.

[OffTheHook]

Good Luck J! You will be missed! But, I know I will still see ya when you come to some of your little bro's games. Take Care!

[More Cowbell]

Good luck at Phelps, JR! That was a great post!

However, I hope no on else quotes you on here, otherwise we will be to 5 pages on this thread in no time...

[GRIZZ]

Best of luck JR. You made Paintsville extremely proud during your time here and I'm sure Phelps will be just as proud to have you as what we were.

[FOX SPORTS]

As everyone should now know, I have now been hired as the Head Girls Basketball Coach at Phelps High School. I have been reading the “rumor” thread since May, and as most of you should know by now, I am a regular on this site. Not so much to give my opinions, but just to see what is going on. In this post, however, I would like to take this opportunity to give some of my opinions and respond to some posts that are contained in this thread.
I am tried of being just known as 1998 Kentucky Mr. Basketball, I want to be known as something else, hopefully I will be remembered as a good and fair coach. I hope that you can understand that!

Great Post!!!

The basketball coaching ranks in eastern Kentucky just got a little classier.

JR, Good luck in the future.

I may be one of the few people that got to broadcast your career(including the '96 state championship and '98 runner up) and your wife when she played at Phelps.

Congrats to you both!!!

[Grand Slam]

Great post JR

[pvilletigerfan]

Good luck JR!

[Lisa Douglas]

We can understand and we wish you every success!

[J. R. VanHoose]

There will be a press conference at the Phelps High School library tomorrow at 1 PM to announce my hiring, as well as the new football coach.

[jammin' jamey]

JR, that was the best 5 minutes I've ever spent reading a post on this site...Good luck @ Phelps...We'll see you on the sideline from the broadcasting booth.

[J. R. VanHoose]

Guys, I appreciate all of the positive remarks. I am very excited about this opportunity, but yet I am also very nervous. I really don't know what to expect, but that is both exciting and nerve racking at the same time. All of the positive comments help out tremendously!!!!

[phs1986]

Guys, I appreciate all of the positive remarks. I am very excited about this opportunity, but yet I am also very nervous. I really don't know what to expect, but that is both exciting and nerve racking at the same time. All of the positive comments help out tremendously!!!!

Don't you worry hon...You will do just fine!!!! and UH.. remember..... Sissy is NOT far away!!! LOLOL.... You know what I just told ya~~~......

[THOMCAT]

Good luck J.R. It has been a pleasure watching you play and also giving back to the community. Who would have guessed that your career would have been what it is. Especially since we go back to the days that you were a skinny elementary student crossing the street and coming to the commissioners office (the former sheriff's office) and I was working with your grandparents. Again, good luck from the black and gold side of Paint Creek.

[J. R. VanHoose]

Good luck J.R. It has been a pleasure watching you play and also giving back to the community. Who would have guessed that your career would have been what it is. Especially since we go back to the days that you were a skinny elementary student crossing the street and coming to the commissioners office (the former sheriff's office) and I was working with your grandparents. Again, good luck from the black and gold side of Paint Creek.

Thanks, I remember those days too!!!! I wish my "pap" were still alive to see all of this, and to have met my wife (she would have absolutely loved him). I really miss him at times like this!!

[The Guru]

J., your are one of the nicest kids growing up that I had ever met. You were an absoulte pleasure to watch play. You became one of the very nicest people I know. And your wife is a super sweet person. I have really liked all of her family that I have met.
I wish you two all the best and know in my heart that everything will turn out great for you guys. You will be missed from this household, by I know that you all will never be strangers, you are too well grounded.
I have not always agreed with every coaching move you made, but heck,....I never did anyone else either...lol.. You will do a great job when it is all said and done because your heart is always in the right place.
Your mother and father and the rest of your family is very proud of you I am positive on that, but everyone in Paintsville is proud as punch to call you a "Native Son".

[mcfan1]

Good luck J.R., you are a class act that will put Phelps Lady Hornet basketball back on the map.

[Tubby Lover]

wow,a great post!!!!

[meganwillis10]

good luck J.R. and best of luck to the lady hornets!

[Kentucky97]

Look out Hornets, get the Hornet Burger cooking.

[phs1986]

Look out Hornets, get the Hornet Burger cooking.

If I'm not mistaken ..... J likes Krazy Bread... (and he is gonna try it with some toppings too!!)... LOLOLOL....

[phs1986]

Here is the link to the story in today's News-express...

http://www.news-expressky.com/

BTW... J, you looked very handsome!!! Congrats again ....

[J. R. VanHoose]

Guys, once again, thanks for all of the support, I know the girls and I would really appreciate all of this support once the season begins. But I really appreciate all of the support, once I get adjusted to a new school and new kids, I am sure things will be great. Right now, I just have to keep working on getting my room and basketball office and locker room in shape before school starts!!!

[Wyatt Earp]

Welcome to the coaching ranks and I am sure You will do a first class job. I have said before that coaching involves so much more than the W's and L's and running a program with positive attitude's come from the top. We had a class together at Prestonsburg and have gone against each other a few times from the sidelines. You have continued to show how being the focus of much attention, that it can be handled in the correct manner. I wish the best for You and the basketball family that You will be taking under your guidance. They will be the better for it.