The UTSA Roadrunners are running wild, posting an 8-0 record and ranked #23 in the AP Top 25 Football Poll. And the leader of this resurgence of Roadrunner football is head coach Jeff Traylor.
Jeff Traylor and Texas High School Football
But before all of his success at the college level, Traylor had a very successful 15-year tenure as head coach at Gilmer High School. He led his Buckeye teams to three state titles and two runner-up finishes.
He won 87% of his games. Today, that winning percentage ranks 10th all-time in the Texas high school football record books.
Traylor posted an extraordinary 175-26 coaching record. He led Gilmer to five state championship game appearances. They won state titles in 2004, 2009, and 2014 and won an amazing 12 district championships.
The Buckeyes posted undefeated seasons twice, won by double-digits 11 times, posted seven 13-win seasons, and had three 15-win seasons during his tenure.
Jeff Traylor and his 2014 4A State Championship Team
In 2014, his 15-0 Class 4A state championship team suited up one of the most prolific offenses ever to set foot on a football field. Gilmer scored an extraordinary 950 points, which is the second-most in Texas high school football history. They averaged 59 points and 536 yards per game.
Led by QB McLane Carter (3969 yards, 47 TDs), the Buckeyes scored 60 points or more points nine times (twice in the playoffs) and scored 80 points twice (once in the playoffs).
Gilmer also gained 8,577 total yards of offense as a result of a balanced attack consisting of 293 yards passing and 242 yards rushing per game.
The defense was just as prolific. The Buckeyes allowed only 276 points, with five single-digit outings and two shutouts. As a unit, the Gilmer defense intercepted 23 passes and forced 17 fumbles.
Gilmer won the 2014 4A state championship with a 35-25 win over West Orange-Stark.
Gilmer’s other two state titles both under Coach Traylor came at the Class 3A level in 2004 and 2009. Later on, Gilmer changed the name of its stadium to Jeff Traylor Stadium, in honor of their successful head coach.
Jeff Traylor Coaching Accolades
Coach Traylor has earned many coaching accolades as a high school coach in Texas, including:
- Induction into the East Texas Coaches Association Hall of Honor, 2019
- 4X Texas High School Football Coach of the Year
- Coach of the Decade (the 2000s), Tyler Morning Telegraph.
- 12X District Coach of the Year,
- 4X East Texas Coach of the Year
- 4X Ted Jeffries Award winner
- Carl Padilla Coach of the Year
- KYKX Coach of the Year
- 2X Old Coach Network Coach of the Year
Traylor got into high school coaching as an assistant coach at Big Sandy High School from 1990 to 1993.
He then spent seven years, from 1994 to 2000, at Jacksonville High School. There he served in several coaching positions, including passing game coordinator, defensive backs coach, receivers coach, and special teams coordinator.
At Jacksonville High, he coached future NFL quarterbacks Josh McCown (Sam Houston State) Luke McCown (La. Tech), and also Randy McCown, a former Texas A&M quarterback.
Coach Traylor is a graduate of Gilmer High School, Class of ’86.
Material for this article sourced from Jeff Traylor – Head Coach – Football Coaches – UTSA Athletics (goutsa.com)
**Helmet image credit: texashshelmetproject.com
[adsanity align=’alignnone’ id=67800]
