Following a three-year hiatus, Willie Patrick learned last summer that he would be returning to his alma mater – Wheatley High School – as head boys’ basketball coach.
“It was great news. I was coming back home,” Patrick said. “I told the players that this was a dream come true because this is a traditional basketball school. This is where I wanted to be all along.”
Following integration during the 1967-68 school year in Texas, Wheatley won three consecutive large-school state championships (1968-70). After near misses in 1971 and 1972, the 1973 Wheatley Wildcats went 43-1 and averaged more than 110 points per game en route to another state title.
Former Wheatley coach Jackie Carr called the 1973 team the best Wildcats’ team ever. Wheatley won another state championship in 1978.
“One of the best things about being back at Wheatley is getting help from Coach Carr,” Patrick said. “He’s my partner and his help is invaluable. He knows so much about the game and he’s willing to share his knowledge.”
Patrick guided Wheatley to the state tournament in 2008 after upsetting rival Yates in the regional final. The Wildcats overcame a deficit in the final minute of regulation to seal the victory. He misses the rivalry with Yates but says there are still plenty of good teams left in Region III-4A.
First and foremost is Fort Bend Marshall, the No. 1 ranked Class 4A school in the Lone Star State. “Then you’ve got the two Beaumont schools (Central and Ozen), Brazosport, Montgomery and Huntsville,” Patrick said.
Four regular season games remain and Patrick is still getting players back from injuries. “We’ve got North Forest coming up next and we want to take care of them,” Patrick said. “They beat us in football and we want to turn the tables in basketball.”
DARRELL K. ARDISON
Defender
