SPRINGDALE — Prairie Grove reached out to Tommy Roy two years ago when it decided to start a high school soccer program.
Roy was in demand for advice after leading the Shiloh Christian girls to the Class 5A state soccer championship in 2013.
“There’s a lot of potential for growth in soccer at Prairie Grove,” said Roy, who spent six years as the girls coach at Shiloh Christian. “When I took over at Shiloh, they had won three games the previous year. This program is in much better shape.”
Roy will get a much closer look at soccer and other sports programs at Prairie Grove after being named the school’s athletic director last month. He replaces Mike Green, who was athletic director at Prairie Grove for 22 years before his death last August. Prairie Grove received over 40 applications for the position and nine applicants were brought in for interviews.
“We asked what students should learn about participation in sports and Tommy’s answer about teamwork and responsibility fit in with our philosophy,” said Allen Williams, superintendent of Prairie Grove schools. “Plus, he really wanted to be a part of Prairie Grove.”
Roy, 37, won’t take over officially as athletic director at Prairie Grove until July, but he was involved with the hiring last week of Chris Mileham, who replaces Mitch Cameron as baseball coach after Cameron was named baseball coach at Rogers Heritage. Roy and his wife, Christa, are busy house-hunting in Prairie Grove after selling their previous home in Springdale.
The couple has two children, Paxton, 18, who recently graduated from Springdale Har-Ber, and Mia, 9, who will attend school at Prairie Grove beginning this fall.
“As a player, I remember coming to Prairie Grove and it seemed like the whole town would shut down for a basketball or football game,” Roy said. “That hasn’t changed. So, the community and family-feel you have here was a big draw as something I wanted to be a part of.”
Dan Farmer, a longtime former basketball coach, has known Roy since Roy was a standout point guard at Shiloh Christian. He said the school made the right move by hiring Roy, a University of Arkansas graduate who teaches government and history.
“Tommy Roy is an outstanding person,” said Farmer, who retired recently from Greenland. “It’s tough to follow an absolute legend like Mike Green, but Tommy will do a great job at Prairie Grove. He’s very conscientious in dealing with people and he knows how to win, obviously, after winning a state championship in soccer at Shiloh Christian.”
Roy, who returned this week from a family vacation to Chicago and St. Louis, said he is eager to meet with all the coaches at Prairie Grove and continue the standard that Green began. Roy officially starts his new job July 1 at a salary of $51,399 per year.
“I know the impact coach Green made on P rairie Grove,” Roy said. “You can’t run into anybody without someone saying something great about coach Green.I’m not going to try and fill those shoes. I’m going to try and build on the great foundation he’s already laid and the tradition he’s established.”
Rick Fires can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter@NWARick.