Findlay Prep players and coaches gather with teammate Rashad Vaughn at a local McDonald’s to honor him being selected as a McDonald’s All-American on Thursday, March 27, 2014.
Wednesday, May 28, 2014 | 12:40 p.m.
More Coverage
Findlay Prep didn’t have to go outside its offices to find its next head coach. Associate head coach Andy Johnson, who’s been with the program the past five years, has been promoted to the staff’s top spot, the Henderson International School announced Tuesday evening.
Johnson was a student manager under Lon Kruger at UNLV before starting work at Findlay Prep in 2009. He’s been on staff for two national high school invitational titles and helped Findlay Prep compile an overall record of 158-13 during that time.
“It is with tremendous honor and humility that I have accepted the head coaching position at Findlay Prep,” Johnson said in a statement. “We look forward to continuing the great tradition that has been established by all of our great alums, current players and coaches.”
Players on Findlay Prep’s roster take classes at the Henderson International School and they live in a pair of supervised houses near the school. Johnson lived in one of the houses for several years.
Johnson is the fourth coach in the last four years at Findlay. Mike Peck was the Pilots’ head coach from 2007 until 2012. When Peck left to coach the Portland Trailblazers’ Developmental League team, Todd Simon took over. After one season, Simon left for an opening on UNLV’s staff and former NBA player Jerome Williams, who had been working with the program for a couple of years, was moved into the lead role with Johnson as the top assistant.
Williams wasn’t asked back for a second season, so the task of leading one of the best prep programs in the country now falls to Johnson. The Pilots went 31-5 last season as they battled various injuries most of the way.
The stability of pulling the new coach from the current staff likely helps maintain the Pilots’ excellent recruiting record, although the constant change at the top could also bee seen as a negative to some potential players.
Taylor Bern can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Taylor on Twitter at twitter.com/taylorbern.
Join the Discussion:
Check this out for a full explanation of our conversion to the LiveFyre commenting system and instructions on how to sign up for an account.
Full comments policy