SHSU alum Tullos named 5A Coach of the Year
12/15/2015 3:07:00 PM | Football
Former Sam Houston State defensive back and current George Ranch football coach Ricky Tullos has been honored as the 2015 Coach of the Year by the Houston Touchdown Club after leading the Longhorns to the Class 5A Division I State Championship.
The Longhorns, who are in just their fourth year of playing football, took two of three major awards at the postseason UIL awards dinner, and head into Friday's state championship against Lake Ridge at 15-0.
Tullos spent four years at Cleveland ISD from 2007-2010 and led the Cleveland Indians to district championships in 2008 and 2009. He played linebacker at Navarro Junior College before transferring to Sam Houston where the 5-10, 195-pound junior spent the 1996 season.
“It's very rewarding to see all the hard work and time and effort put in over the last three to five years,” Tullos told the Houston Chronicle. “You come to a deal like tonight where it was recognized. That's always special and definitely a phenomenal feeling for me and our coaches and kids.”
At the helm, Tullos is 45-8, including a 24-17 victory against the Vandergrift Vipers in the program's first state quarterfinals on Dec. 4, then beat the Vista Ridge Rangers, 42-23, in the semifinals on Dec. 11. Friday's state championship will be at NRG Stadium at 8 p.m.
Tullos was selected among 10 finalists for Coach of the Year at the Dec. 9 event. A season ago, George Ranch went into the quarterfinals, finishing 12-2 overall, while making the quarterfinals in 2013, going 13-1. This season is the last in Class 5A before making the jump to 6A.
“We want to finish it up,” Tullos told the Chronicle on being in the championship. “It's definitely a goal of ours. It's a kid's dream. It's a coach's dream.”
