History of Yoe Football

With the hiring of former Yoe defensive coordinator Joe Oliver (1981-1984), it brought back memories of him and fellow Yoe assistant Eddie Dunn.  Both had great years of coaching, not only football, but a variety of spring sports.  Oliver will now be principal at Yoe High.  Dunn, after leaving in 1988, also returned to be Junior High principal in 1996 in Cameron. 

When Toby York was hired to lead the football program at Yoe High, he was on Bob McQueen’s staff at Temple, as was Oliver.  York built his staff around Oliver (defensive coordinator) and Dunn.  He retained Ken Poole and Steve Gaddis from the year before and of course hired former Yoe player Randy Sapp to lead the Junior High sports, just out of college. 

Following their state championship in 1981, Ken Poole continued to head the basketball program, Joe Oliver took over track duties with help from Gaddis, while Dunn took over the baseball team.

Oliver was the first to leave, when he took the head coaching job at Clifton in 1984.  His two years at Clifton produced a record of (14-7-0) with a district championship in 1984.  He would then take the head coaching job at Hallsville, a class 4A school in a very tough district.  In five years at Hallsville his record would be (24-25-1) with a playoff team in 1988.  I believe Coach Steve Gaddis was on his staff there. 

Class 3A Hillsboro hired him away in 1991.  He would serve the Eagles for seven years, going (32-37-1) with a playoff team in 1997.  He would retire from coaching that year and begin his administrative career at Sulphur Springs as assistant principal, working with former Yoe principal Jack Chubb, before taking the head principal job, until he got his first superintendent position at Clarksville.  He held that position for two years before taking the same position at Wills Point. 

He would take retirement in 2010 before joining old friend Eddie Dunn (who also had retired in 2010) as - who would ever guess - high school coaches.  Central Texas Christian (located outside of Temple) was just starting 11-man football and they took over to lead them.  Oliver was head football coach and Dunn assisting and also coaching basketball and teaching history.  

Back to 1983 when Joe left the Yoemen, Eddie Dunn stayed with Coach York for their final four years at Yoe High.  Those years were equal to and even greater years as the Yoemen came within a hair of defeating the Cuero Gobblers in the semi-finals at Royal Memorial Stadium (34-27).  Cuero won the state title the next week.  That was 1987.  Coach York took the head job at his alma mater Conroe.  Dunn followed in the footsteps of his close friend Oliver, with his first and only head job at Clifton. 

Dunn had a four-year record of (27-15-1) with a great (10-2-1) season in 1990.  He retired (1991) and began his administrative career in the fall at Waco, but stayed only a half year before going to Bonham Junior High in Temple, where he was assistant principal for two years and principal for one full year.  He took over as principal of Cameron Junior High for the next three years (96-99).

His next high school principal job was in West Texas at Seminole (99-02), followed by a three-year stint at Troup High School in East Texas.  He moved on to Jasper on the Louisiana border for a couple of years before getting the Ennis job from 2006-2009 and retiring.  Retirement did not last long before taking the aforementioned job with Coach Oliver at Temple (CTCS). 

Following their work at CTCS (2010-2014), Oliver would go into public relations with Parsons Roofing, while Dunn would retire and move to Tyler where his daughter’s family was.  That didn’t last long either as Tyler ISD talked him into helping them out in a crisis and taking the principal's job at Hoag Middle School in Tyler.

So that brings you up to date with two great coaches and two great men, who I am really proud to call my friends.  So glad that Joe Oliver is back at Yoe High, knowing I will see him very much and hopefully York, Dunn, Gaddis, Poole, and others often.  “Once a Yoemen, Alway a Yoemen.”