Central High School (San Angelo, Texas)

Infobox School
name = Central High School


imagesize =
caption =
motto = America's first ageless, campus-type high school
established = 1958
type = Public
affiliation = Public High School
district = San Angelo Independent School District
grades = 10 - 12
president =
principal = Bill Waters
head of school =
dean =
faculty =
staff =
students =
enrollment = 2987 Includes Freshmen (9th Grade) Campus
athletics =
conference = District 2-5A
colors = Orange and Blue
mascot = Bobcat
campus type = It was the first college campus-type of high school
campus size = 26-building campus on 40-acres
free_label =
free_text =
free_label2 =
free_text2 =
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location = San Angelo, Texas
country = USA
information =
website = [http://central.saisd.org Central High School]

Central High School (known as "San Angelo High School" before 1958) is a public, co-educational secondary school in San Angelo, Texas. It is part of the San Angelo Independent School District. The school serves grades 10-12 and usually has more than 2200 students enrolled. Its mascot is the Bobcat.

Athletics

With a reported enrollment of 2,993 [http://www.uil.utexas.edu/2008align/pdf/5A_fb_enroll.pdf] (which combines the freshman campus and high school enrollments), the Bobcats of San Angelo Central compete with some of Texas' largest high schools as a member of Conference 5A of the University Interscholastic League, the state's governing body for public school competition. Notable programs include:

*Gymnastics- The Lady Cats Gymnastics team has won back-to-back state championships the past three years. Members from both the Women's and Men's teams were selected for the Texas National Team, with the women (led by Central coach Tony Walker) winning the National Championship. The Bobcats have won the Texas State Championship in 1974, 1976, 1978, 1983, 1987, and 2001. The Lady Cats have won the Texas State Championship in 1989, 2006, 2007, and 2008.

*Tennis- The Bobcats' Tennis team finished the 2007 season ranked 11th by the Texas Tennis Coaches Association. [http://www.texastenniscoaches.com/Rankings.htm]

*Volleyball- The Lady Cats Volleyball team finished its 2007 season ranked 22nd by the Texas Girls Coaches Association. [http://www.austintgca.com/vball/poll.cfm]

Others that have enjoyed recent success are the soccer and Cross Country programs.

Baseball

The baseball program at Central has struggled as of recent years, but is expected to contend for district titles in upcoming years. Central has had numerous players drafted into the majors including, Trey Lunsford, Shea Morenz, Julio Guerrero, and Ramsey Koschak. Head coach is Jerry Tischler, assistant coaches are Casey Otho and Art Rios.

Football

Central High School Bobcats football saw its heyday from the 1940s through the 1970s under head coaches Jewell Wallace, Bob Harrell, Emory Bellard, Dan Lagrasta and Smitty Hill, winning state championships in 1943 (open class) and 1966 (Conference 4A, the largest classification at the time) [http://www.uil.utexas.edu/athletics/archives/football/champions.html] . Traditionally, Central competed with Odessa High, Odessa Permian, Midland High, Midland Lee, Abilene and Abilene Cooper in UIL District 3-5A (District 3-4A until 1979), a grouping popularly known as the "Little Southwest Conference" due to the extremely high standard of football exhibited by the district's schools. After the 1997 season, the Bobcats were moved away from the LSC into District 2-5A with teams from Lubbock and Amarillo.

Beginning with the 2008-2009 academic year, the Bobcats, along with five of its newer Panhandle rivals, will rejoin the four Odessa and Midland schools in an enlarged ten-team District 2-5A.

Coaching history

*record only 1951 and '52.
Source: cite web | title="Little SWC" composite football coaching records 1951-present | url=http://www.fridaynighthistory.com/coachrecords.html | publisher=FridayNightHistory.com | accessdate=2007-09-12

Notable alumni

* Kristopher Carter, composer. Won Emmy award for his work on the animated series “Batman Beyond”.
* Ken Henson, center for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Played four games in 1965.
* David Hulse played for the Texas Rangers and Milwaukee Brewers from 1992 to 1996.
* Shea Morenz, quarterback for the Texas Longhorns
* Frank Myers, Offensive tackle for the Minnesota Vikings
* Lucy A. Snyder, science fiction author
* Fess Parker, Actor, Davy Crockett, Daniel Boone.*
*Cayddrick Ballard, Oxford University,Ambassador Extraordinary and Plentipotentiary Honorary Doctor of Letters

External links

* [http://central.saisd.org/index.htm Official web site of Central High School]
* [http://www.gosanangelo.com/news/2007/jun/30/oxford-opportunity Oxford Opportunity for Cayddrick Ballard]
* [http://central.saisd.org/departments/jrotcsite/rotc/index/index.htm Official Website for Central High School Texas 936 unit]