Gary Gaines, a well-known head football coach from Texas, died Monday at the age of 73, according to a statement from his family.
Gaines’ most notable achievement was leading Odessa Permian to a state title in 1989. In West Texas, he coached for four decades at two different college levels as well as high schools.
He was one of the main figures in HG Bissinger’s 1990 bestseller “Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream”, which depicted the Permian countryside of 1988 and the crazy football culture of the west. from Texas.
Gary Gaine
What happened to coach Gary Gaines? Death at 73 saddens everyone
On Monday evening, Gary Gaines, the former Permian football coach, died suddenly. He had a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease, according to mrt.com.
CBS7News anchor Jakob Brandenburg tweeted the depressing information on August 23. “Coach Gary Gaines, made famous by Friday Night Lights, passed away last night,” he wrote.
His followers and former teammates had paid tribute to him since it was made official that he had left this planet.
Greg Rajan, super utility for the HoustonChron, said, “I did a story about the release of the movie ‘Friday Night Lights’ and how it compared to the 2004 novel. Gary Gaines was really nice even though it was something he had repeatedly addressed for a decade, rest in peace.
The ACU Football community has sent its condolences to Gary’s family during this difficult time and expressed their sorrow over the incident. “Deeply sorry to learn of the passing of Texas coaching legend Gary Gaines, who contributed his five years leading the Wildcat program,” the team wrote in a tweet.
Friday Night Lights star trainer Gary Gaines might surprise you
It is estimated that Gary Gaines has a net worth of around $5 million given his long coaching career.
Gaines, who was born in Crane, began his career in the industry while a student at Petersberg High School and worked there for 35 years.
Amarillo Tascosa, Monahans, Abilene, and San Angelo Central High Schools then hired him as their head coach. Denver City High School was next.
For three years, from 1979 to 1981, he supported head coach John Willins at Permian High School in Odessa.
Additionally, he has spoken at high schools and universities across the country about cooperation, leadership, success, and achievement on and off the field.
2013 saw the induction of popular head coach Gaines into the Texas High School Coaches Association Hall of Honor. He was also inducted into the Angelo State University Hall of Honor in 2019.
Talking about his post-coaching career, he started working as an athletic director for the Ector County Independent School District in 2005. Additionally, he was employed in 2007 by the Lubbock Independent School District in the same capacity .
Gary Gaines, head football coach with decades of experience, must have earned between $35,000 and $45,000 each year.
Its exact benefits have not yet been confirmed by the official sites. Nevertheless, according to ZipRecruiter, the average income of a high school football coach in the United States is $42,675 per year and $3,556 per month.
In his early years, he worked at Texas Tech for three seasons as a linebackers coach.
The Red Raiders were 27-30 and played in two bowl games, including the 1995 Cotton Bowl Classic, during his five seasons at Tech.
After leaving Texas Tech after the 1994 season, he then accepted the head coaching position at Abilene High School.
He was named the 17th head football coach for Abilene Christian University in Abilene, Texas in January 2000. Coach Gary finished the 2004 campaign with a five-season record of 21-30.
He guided the Wildcats to a 6-4 victory and the Lone Star Conference South Division championship in 2000.
Gary Gaines has passed away
Coach Gary Gaines marries Sharon Gaines and grieving family – Where are they now?
Gary Gaines, the head coach of the football team, was married to Sharon Gaines. They had two adult children and five grandchildren together.
The Gaines family are currently requesting privacy as they grapple with Gary’s death. His funeral plans are not yet finalized.
The 73-year-old woman and her children will continue to care for him. May God give Gary’s family the courage to endure their loss.
American football coach Gary Gaines died on August 22, 2022 (he was born on May 4, 1949). Gaines was the head coach of the Permian High School football team in 1988, which was the subject of the 2004 film Friday Night Lights starring Billy Bob Thornton and the book Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream by HG Bissinger. His four-decade coaching career included stops at eight high schools and two colleges in Texas.
| Born | May 4, 1949 Crane, Texas, USA |
|---|---|
| deceased | August 22, 2022 (73 years old) |
| 1968-1970 | Angelo State |
Coaching career
Gaines coached high school football in West Texas for a total of 30 seasons at various high schools. After beginning his teaching career in 1971 at Fort Stockton High School, he taught for five years at Monahans High School. The year 1977 marked his first year as a head coach at Petersburg High School. After that, he would become the head football coach of Denver City High School in 1978, Amarillo Tascosa High School in 1982, Monahans from 1983 to 1985, Abilene High School from 1994 to 1995, and San Angelo Central High School. in 1995. (1996-1999).
Odessa Permian
Gaines achieved the greatest success during her time at Permian High School, located in Odessa, Texas. Between the 1979 and 1981 seasons, he worked under head coach John Wilkins as an assistant coach throughout those three years. In 1980, Permian’s coaching staff, which included Gaines, led the school to the 5A state championship in Texas.
Gaines returned to the Permian as head coach after Wilkins resigned at the end of the 1985 season and took over a program that had competed in the state title game for Division 5A the previous two consecutive years. . (In 1984, the game ended in a 21-21 tie, and Permian High School and Beaumont French High School were crowned co-champions. However, in 1985, Permian High School and Beaumont French High School were beaten by Houston Yates High School.
Gaines was one of the main characters in the book Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream by HG Bissinger, published in 1990. The book told the story of the 1988 football season at Permian High School and football . – culture obsessed with West Texas. The following year, Gaines led Permian to a perfect 16-0 season and the 1989 5A State Championship under the guidance of the head coaching position. Gaines left Permian after the 1989 season, having compiled a record of 46-7-1 during his time there.
Back to the Permian
Following Darren Allman’s departure to Austin Westlake, Permian High School announced on March 9, 2009, that Gaines would take over as the school’s head coach. Since Gaines had left the Permian, the passage of time had passed 20 years, and it had been 10 years since he had coached high school football. The Panthers finished with a 23-21 record in four seasons, with just one playoff victory. This was not enough for them to replicate Gaines’ success in the 1980s. Gaines resigned as head coach at the end of the 2012 season and declared his intention to retire from the coaching profession. Gaines compiled a record of 69-28-1 during his tenure as head coach at Permian, which is part of his overall record of 127-93-5 during his tenure as head coach for a total of 20 seasons.
University coaching
After the 1989 season ended, Gaines accepted his first college coaching job and was hired by Texas Tech University to work as a linebackers coach under head coach Spike Dykes. (In the early 1980s, when Gaines was an assistant coach at Permian High School, Dykes was the head coach of Permian’s rival school, Midland Lee High School.) During his five years as a coach- leader at Texas Tech, the Red Raiders combined for a record. from 27 to 30 and appeared in two bowling games, one of which was the 1995 Cotton Bowl Classic. Gaines resigned as head coach at Texas Tech at the end of the 1994 season and accepted the same position at Abilene High School.
Abilene Christian
In January 2000, Gaines was awarded the position of 17th head football coach at Abilene Christian University, located in Abilene, Texas. The ACU struggled throughout Gaines’ first two seasons as head coach and lost 17 of 21 games during that span. Despite early struggles, the Wildcats managed to bounce back in 2002, compiling a 6-4 winning record and winning the Lone Star Conference South Division Championship. It was the first championship of any kind for the Wildcats since 1977, when they won their one and only Lone Star Conference Championship. Gaines decided to step down as head coach after finishing the 2004 campaign with a 21-30 record overall.
Post-coach career
Gaines became the athletic director of the Ector County Independent School District in 2005, the same school district that is home to Permian High School. During his tenure there, Gaines oversaw all of the high school’s extracurricular activities. In 2007, he was hired by the Lubbock Independent School District to serve as the district athletic director.
Gaines was not only an author but also a public speaker. Gaines shared his wisdom on the importance of cooperation, leadership and winning on and off the court in presentations he gave at high schools and colleges across the country.
Personal life and death
Gaines was a quarterback at Angelo State University from 1967 to 1970, and he earned a letter during the four years he held the job. Gaines was born in Crane, Texas.
He was married to Sharon Gaines, and the couple were parents to two children and grandparents to five grandchildren. In 2013 he was recognized in the Texas High School Coaches Association Hall of Honor, and in 2019 he was inducted into the Angelo State University Hall of Honor.
In 2017, Gaines revealed to the public that he had been diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease.
At the age of 73, Gaines died on August 22, 2022 from complications related to Alzheimer’s disease.
