SAM CASEY
A REVIEW OF SAM CASEY’S COACHING RECORD SHOWS THAT HE WAS A MULTI-TALENTED COACH. DURING HIS 15 YEAR COACHING CAREER, HE COACHED THE FOLLOWING SPORTS IN SIX (6) DIFFERENT SCHOOLS: BASKETBALL, FOOTBALL, BASEBALL, AND TRACK.
IT IS PARTICULARLY NOTEWORTHY THAT HE TOOK THE HIGHLAND SENIOR GIRLS TO THE BASKETBALL STATE TOURNAMENT IN 1966 AND LATER IN 1974 HE TOOK THE RECTOR SENIOR BOYS TO THE BASKETBALL STATE TOURNAMENT. IN 1977 HE TOOK THE CROSS COUNTY SENIOR BOYS TO THE BASKETBALL STATE TOURNAMENT.
IN ADDITION, OF SIGNIFICANCE, HE STARTED THE FOOTBALL PROGRAM AT BEEDEVILLE IN 1967 AND ‘RESTARTED’ THE FOOTBALL PROGRAM AT RECTOR IN 1973, AFTER MORE THAN 20-30 YEARS OF THE SUSPENSION OF THE PROGRAM.
AS THE SENIOR BOYS COACH, CASEY AVERAGED 20 WINS PER SEASON. PROBABLY HIS MOST SUCCESSFUL YEAR IN BASKETBALL AT RECTOR WAS THE 1973-74 SEASON. THEY BEGAN THE YEAR WITH 19 CONSECUTIVE WINS. THEY WON THE ARKANSAS COLLEGE TOURNAMENT AND WERE THE NUMBER ONE SEED IN THE NEA TOURNAMENT. KEITH PRICE COULDN’T PLAY BECAUSE OF A BROKEN FINGER AND THEY LOST TO WEST MEMPHIS IN THE FINALS ON TWO FREE THROWS AFTER THE FINAL BUZZER. THIS TEAM WAS RANKED #1 IN ‘CLASS A’ FOR MUCH OF THE YEAR. LATE IN THE SEASON, WHEN THEY WERE 29-2 [THE TWO LOSSES WERE BY A TOTAL OF THREE (3) POINTS], THEY WERE RANKED #9 IN THE STATE…THE ONLY ‘CLASS A’ SCHOOL RANKED IN THE TOP 10. [AT THAT TIME, THERE WERE ONLY FOUR (4) ‘CLASSES’: AAA, AA, A, B.] THE SENIOR BOYS TEAM WAS 34-4 FOR THE SEASON.
IN 1974, THE RECTOR BLACKCATS SWEPT THE CLAY COUNTY BASKETBALL TOURNAMENTS; THEY WON JUNIOR HIGH, SENIOR ‘B’ TEAM, AND SENIOR ‘A’ TEAM. RHS WAS DOMINATE IN THE CLAY COUNTY BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT DURING CASEY’S TENURE.
IN ADDITION TO HIS OUTSTANDING COACHING, SAM HAS MADE OTHER SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTIONS TO SCHOOLS AND COMMUNITIES WHERE HE HAS LIVED:
SAM COACHED SEVERAL OUTSTANDING PLAYERS: MIKE BAKER 1969-70; SHAYNE ROOFE & MIKE MORRIS 1970-71; KEITH PRICE, JIM SPEER, JERRY HUGGINS (ALL THREE HAD COLLEGE SCHOLARSHIPS) IN 1973-74; TONY ELLIS AND TERRY PRATT IN 1975; RANDY ROGERS AND SCOTTY JOHNSON IN 1975-76. [SPEER, ROGERS, AND JOHNSON HAVE BEEN INDUCTED INTO THE RECTOR HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS HALL OF FAME.]
- COACHED JUNIOR HIGH BASKETBALL, FOOTBALL AND TRACK AND ASSISTED IN SENIOR HIGH AT HARDING ACADEMY FOR ONE YEAR. (1964-65)
- COACHED AT HIGHLAND HIGH SCHOOL FOR TWO YEARS (1965-1967) COACHED SENIOR HIGH BOYS IN BASKETBALL AND TRACK, JUNIOR HIGH BOYS IN BASKETBALL, AND SENIOR GIRLS IN BASKETBALL. TOOK THE SENIOR GIRLS TO STATE TOURNAMENT IN 1966.
- COACHED ONE YEAR AT BEEDEVILLE SCHOOL (1967-1968). COACHED JUNIOR BOYS BASKETBALL AND STARTED FOOTBALL.
- COACHED EIGHT YEARS AT RECTOR HIGH SCHOOL (1968-1976). FIRST YEAR WAS HEAD JUNIOR HIGH BOYS BASKETBALL COACH AND ASSISTED JESS BUCY WITH SENIOR BOYS BASKETBALL. THE NEXT SEVEN YEARS WAS HEAD SENIOR BOYS BASKETBALL COACH AND ASSISTED WITH JUNIOR BOYS BASKETBALL. STARTED FOOTBALL IN 1973.
- COACHED AT CROSS COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL FOR TWO YEARS (1976-1978). COACHED SENIOR AND JUNIOR BOYS BASKETBALL, ASSISTED WITH FOOTBALL AND COACHED HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL. TOOK THE SENIOR BOYS TO THE STATE BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT IN 1977.
- COACHED THE SENIOR BOYS BASKETBALL FOR ONE YEAR AT CAVE CITY HIGH SCHOOL IN 1978.
A REVIEW OF SAM CASEY’S COACHING RECORD SHOWS THAT HE WAS A MULTI-TALENTED COACH. DURING HIS 15 YEAR COACHING CAREER, HE COACHED THE FOLLOWING SPORTS IN SIX (6) DIFFERENT SCHOOLS: BASKETBALL, FOOTBALL, BASEBALL, AND TRACK.
IT IS PARTICULARLY NOTEWORTHY THAT HE TOOK THE HIGHLAND SENIOR GIRLS TO THE BASKETBALL STATE TOURNAMENT IN 1966 AND LATER IN 1974 HE TOOK THE RECTOR SENIOR BOYS TO THE BASKETBALL STATE TOURNAMENT. IN 1977 HE TOOK THE CROSS COUNTY SENIOR BOYS TO THE BASKETBALL STATE TOURNAMENT.
IN ADDITION, OF SIGNIFICANCE, HE STARTED THE FOOTBALL PROGRAM AT BEEDEVILLE IN 1967 AND ‘RESTARTED’ THE FOOTBALL PROGRAM AT RECTOR IN 1973, AFTER MORE THAN 20-30 YEARS OF THE SUSPENSION OF THE PROGRAM.
AS THE SENIOR BOYS COACH, CASEY AVERAGED 20 WINS PER SEASON. PROBABLY HIS MOST SUCCESSFUL YEAR IN BASKETBALL AT RECTOR WAS THE 1973-74 SEASON. THEY BEGAN THE YEAR WITH 19 CONSECUTIVE WINS. THEY WON THE ARKANSAS COLLEGE TOURNAMENT AND WERE THE NUMBER ONE SEED IN THE NEA TOURNAMENT. KEITH PRICE COULDN’T PLAY BECAUSE OF A BROKEN FINGER AND THEY LOST TO WEST MEMPHIS IN THE FINALS ON TWO FREE THROWS AFTER THE FINAL BUZZER. THIS TEAM WAS RANKED #1 IN ‘CLASS A’ FOR MUCH OF THE YEAR. LATE IN THE SEASON, WHEN THEY WERE 29-2 [THE TWO LOSSES WERE BY A TOTAL OF THREE (3) POINTS], THEY WERE RANKED #9 IN THE STATE…THE ONLY ‘CLASS A’ SCHOOL RANKED IN THE TOP 10. [AT THAT TIME, THERE WERE ONLY FOUR (4) ‘CLASSES’: AAA, AA, A, B.] THE SENIOR BOYS TEAM WAS 34-4 FOR THE SEASON.
IN 1974, THE RECTOR BLACKCATS SWEPT THE CLAY COUNTY BASKETBALL TOURNAMENTS; THEY WON JUNIOR HIGH, SENIOR ‘B’ TEAM, AND SENIOR ‘A’ TEAM. RHS WAS DOMINATE IN THE CLAY COUNTY BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT DURING CASEY’S TENURE.
IN ADDITION TO HIS OUTSTANDING COACHING, SAM HAS MADE OTHER SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTIONS TO SCHOOLS AND COMMUNITIES WHERE HE HAS LIVED:
- IN 2016 HE WAS PRESENTED A CERTIFICATE FOR CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE NEA INVITATIONAL TOURNAMENT.
- SERVED 10 YEARS AT CAVE CITY AS ELEMENTARY, MIDDLE SCHOOL, AND HIGH SCHOOL PRINCIPAL.
- SERVED 12 YEARS AS SUPERINTENDENT OF SALEM HIGH SCHOOL.
SAM COACHED SEVERAL OUTSTANDING PLAYERS: MIKE BAKER 1969-70; SHAYNE ROOFE & MIKE MORRIS 1970-71; KEITH PRICE, JIM SPEER, JERRY HUGGINS (ALL THREE HAD COLLEGE SCHOLARSHIPS) IN 1973-74; TONY ELLIS AND TERRY PRATT IN 1975; RANDY ROGERS AND SCOTTY JOHNSON IN 1975-76. [SPEER, ROGERS, AND JOHNSON HAVE BEEN INDUCTED INTO THE RECTOR HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS HALL OF FAME.]