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A pillar of soccer in Jessamine County stepped down from his coaching position Wednesday as East Jessamine High School saw both of its head soccer coaches resign.
DeAngelo Wiser had coached the girls’ program at East High for the past five seasons after coaching at Jessamine County High School and West Jessamine High School from 1992 until 2006. Tom Morgan stepped down as the coach of the boys’ team after his fourth year.
Wiser said his decision was influenced by “family considerations” and that it was the right move for him at this time. He said he was proud of the team’s growth over his five years as the Lady Jaguars won two postseason games in 2012 and made it to the region semifinals.
“My biggest memory is probably watching soccer grow in this community,” he said. “It’s come leaps and bounds, and it continues to grow. Our programs are flourishing, and kids are getting a great experience being out on the field and learning some life lessons.”
Wiser said what kept him around so long as a soccer coach in the county was the way his players were impacting him.
“We hear the other side of it a lot times, but young people can really inspire people to pursue dreams,” he said. “I’ve been fortunate enough to have some outstanding young people playing for me over the years, and that’s the main reason.”
Morgan said his decision to step down was rooted in having more time to spend with his family. His wife, Jennifer, has coached volleyball at Dunbar in Lexington since 2005, and the couple have a 4-year-old daughter and a 1-year-old son.
“With those both being fall sports, it’s just a huge commitment with two kids. Last year was extremely hectic on us,” he said. “... She’s been there longer, so we agreed that she would coach high school in the fall and I would coach club in the spring and just balance our schedules so we could have more of a family life.”
Morgan went 38-36-11 in four years coaching at East. The boys’ team went 4-15-3 in a 2012 season plagued by injury.
“I think I did a good job in the four years I was there; I came in and tried to help turn around an East program and build it back up,” he said. “I was happy — I really enjoyed the kids I coached all four years.”
Morgan will continue teaching special education at East. He said coming to the school was the “best decision he’s ever made.”
“I want to continue to teach in Jessamine County, because I really do believe I work for one of the best districts in the state, and hands down, I work in the best school in the state at East Jessamine High School,” he said.
Wiser said he would still like to be involved in soccer at some level but wasn’t sure if he would ever return to high-school coaching. He has 223 victories in his career.
“I think I’ve run my gamut in the county, and that’s something I’m really proud of because people talk about wins and losses, and they talk about records, but those things eventually gather dust in the attic somewhere,” Wiser said. “I was fortunate enough from a girls’-program standpoint to coach at Jessamine County, West Jessamine and East Jessamine; that’s something that no one can really touch.”