For the week of June 25 - July 1, 2003

Larson resigns as basketball coach

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James Foster and Wood River High School are both on the lookout.

Ketchum resident and high school cross country coach Foster has to find a new roommate—and Wood River has to find a new head coach for its boys’ basketball team.

Jeff Larson, 33, head varsity coach of the Wolverine program for four years, resigned Thursday to take a job teaching and coaching in Redmond, Wash. Larson had a 15-74 record in four years at the helm.

Larson, who grew up north of Seattle, played football and basketball at Snohomish High School and coached at two high schools in Redmond before coming to the Hailey school.

Explaining his decision, Larson said Tuesday from Washington State, “It just came down to wanting to be back home and near immediate family. And I wanted to move up a level in coaching. These chances don’t come along every day. I couldn’t pass up the opportunity.”

“But I will miss the Wood River Valley and the people I met there who became like my family—people like Lars Hovey and Midge Patzer and all those at the school district who supported me through the years. They treated me great.”

Recently, Larson said he was contacted by Craig Dexter, former Minico coach who had been Larson’s coaching mentor in his first stint at Redmonds. Dexter is now an assistant athletic coach at Redmonds.

“The fact that Craig Dexter was still at Redmonds influenced me,” said Larson.

Larson was hired Thursday as a math teacher at Redmonds. He will coach defensive backs for the varsity football team and assist for the varsity. Larson will also be JV basketball coach and varsity assistant.

“Redmonds is easily one of the top five programs in the state of Washington,” he said.

The search process

The school might find a coach before Foster finds someone to duel over the television remote control with.
WRHS athletic director Ron Martinez said that several fine candidates already exist, including two men who have recently been hired as teachers.

Jim Boatwright, a former high school All-American at Minico High School in Rupert, is a former European pro player. And John Radford has several years experience coaching in California.

Boatwright recently conducted a summer youth basketball camp in Hailey.

Martinez said the committee will also interview Tim Richards, a high school teacher who is the girls’ varsity volleyball coach at the high school.

“We want to build a winning program for the kids and have something they feel proud of,” Martinez remarked. Wood River is 29-104 over six years on the basketball court.

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