Tom Tice, one of Arkansas' most successful high school football coaches, has stepped down at Huntsville.
Tice, 64, made the move official at Monday night's Huntsville School Board meeting. He will remain with the school as the athletic director.
Arkansas’ winningest
HS football coaches
(Records updated through 2015 season)
COACH;LAST YEAR;W-L-T;PCT.
Frank McClellan;2005;367-77-4;0.824
Tom Tice;2015;289-160-6;0.642
Mike Malham Jr.;ACTIVE;285-121-4;0.700
Bernie Cox;2009;271-123-8;0.684
Frank Vines;2006;270-98-4;0.731
Jerry Clay;2015;269-127-2;0.678
Jarrell Williams;2000;261-131-5;0.664
Don Campbell;2006;256-97 -5;0.722
Barry Lunney;2014;248-89-1;0.735
George Burke;2000;242-143-5;0.627
"I've thought about this for a long time," Tice said Tuesday. "This was something that I didn't want to rush into. I wanted to make sure this was the best thing for me and everybody concerned."
Tice has been a football coach for 45 years, with 42 of those as a head coach at Huntsville or Harrison. He ranks second all-time in career victories with 289, trailing only Frank McClellan's 367. Of the 289 victories, 217 came at Harrison, where he built a powerhouse program. Tice also coached at Fayetteville Ramay Junior High School in 1973 as an assistant.
Tice spent seven seasons (1974-1981) at Huntsville, winning 58 games before moving to Harrison, where he coached from 1982-2010.
He returned to Huntsville, his alma mater, in time for the 2011 season, recording a five-year record of 14-36-1.
Tice said he began considering his plan to step down after the end of the football season in November.
"They say you just know when it's the right time, and I just knew this was the right time," he said. "Last night was the first full night's sleep I've had in I can't remember when."
Tice said the school has begun taking applications for the position and will continue to take them for the next three to four weeks. He said the school hopes to have the new coach in place for spring football practice in mid-April. Tice said the school will look internally and externally for his replacement.
"We want a person who is going to be a good fit," he said.
Tice said he will devote more time to other projects, such as his involvement in the Brandon Burlsworth Foundation. Burlsworth was a player for Tice at Harrison. He said he also will get to spend more time with his grandchildren.
Huntsville Superintendent Clint Jones said Tice's position as a full-time athletic director will be a big asset to both the school and community.
"He's such an encouraging person," Jones said. "This new role will give him the opportunity to work with the administration and help us to continue to build a successful athletic program."
Jones said the coaching position has been posted and, like Tice, he hopes to have the vacancy filled quickly.
"Coach Tice will be working with us on finding the replacement and will be very involved in the coaching hire," Jones said.
Sports on 03/16/2016