DB Names New Head Football Coach
Marcus Hughes coached his Cornwall, New York, high school teams to three playoff appearances
March 14, 2014
Diamond Bar High School has introduced Marcus Hughes, who has a record of 67-13 in seven seasons at Cornwall Central High School in New York, as the “perfect man” to be the next head coach of an improving DB football program. Hughes coached his Cornwall team to three straight New York state playoffs and has earned multiple Section 9 Football Class A New York Coach of the Year honors.
“Out of the 140 applicants, Hughes is by far the best candidate for the job. Mrs. Real and I thoroughly searched for the ‘perfect’ coach for the kids. He’s going to do a great job and is going to be one of the great Brahma coaches,” Athletics Director Kurt Davies said at a press conference on Wednesday.
Hughes inherits a football program that improved drastically under former head coach Ryan Maine, who resigned on February 3 with a record of 15-17 and one second round CIF playoff appearance in three seasons. DB was a sub-par football team before Maine stepped in as the coach, going 22-47-1 from 2004-2010.
Other than defensive line coach Jose Marquez, who also resigned, Hughes said he will retain the rest of the coaching staff for the 2014 football season.
“We are bringing in a couple of new coaches and keeping the rest of the coaching staff to make DB take the next step of becoming great. In order to be a winning team, we need a winning coaching staff,” Hughes said.
With spring practices just around the corner, Hughes has already adjusted to the new environment and made relationships with the players.
“I’m always a West Coast guy. I love the weather, the atmosphere, and the people here. I introduced myself to the team on Tuesday, made jokes with them, and also talked with some players like Isaiah Thompson and the Peterson twins,” Hughes commented.
Even though the start of the 2014 football season is months away, Hughes already has huge expectations to fulfill form the DB fan base. Although stars Cordell Broadus and Brian Lamb transferred to Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas over the winter break, most of the core players from the 2013 football team, which went 7-5 with a second round appearance in CIF, are coming back for the 2014 football season. With starters like the Peterson twins, juniors Kanya Bell and Antonio Hull back for their senior year, Hughes has the talent needed to help DB become successful again.
“We are going to insert new wrinkles in the offense and create a defensive system in order to put the kids in the best position to win. Obviously winning CIF is our ultimate goal,” Hughes said.
