RICHLANDS, Va. – A veteran coach with more than 300 career wins will take over at the helm of the boys basketball program at Richlands High School beginning in the fall.
The Tazewell County School Board announced during its Monday meeting that longtime area coach Brian Moore will serve as the Blue Tornado's boys coach, replacing Ronnie Davis, who is now the football coach at Richlands. Moore will also serve as a teacher at Richlands.
"I would like to thank the Tazewell County Public Schools (TCPS) and Richlands High administration for providing me with this opportunity," said Moore, in a message to the Bristol Herald Courier. "I am looking forward to the opportunity and the challenge that comes with this new position. I am eager to get to work, hopefully we can continue to move the program forward.
"Coach Davis built a good foundation and left things in pretty good shape. It's now my job to build on that."
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Moore has coached the boys and girls basketball programs at Twin Valley, including the girls since 2008. He led the Panthers to a 17-8 record - including the 300th win of his career - and a second-place finish in the Black Diamond District last season. The Panthers loss to Rural Retreat in the quarterfinals of the Region 1D tournament.
Twin Valley finished 18-9 and lost to eventual Class 1 state runner-up Eastside in the Region 1D semifinals two years ago, a team that was led by Moore's daughter, Haylee, who earned VHSL Class 1 player of the year honors and is now playing at Emory & Henry College.
"Leaving Twin Valley is one of the most difficult decisions that I have had to make," Moore said. "Over the course of time, I have met some amazing people and worked with some of the brightest students and exceptional athletes. It is these relationships that have made leaving such a difficult decision."
Moore has spent more than two decades as a head coach or assistant at Warren County in Front Royal, Va., along with Marion, Honaker and Grundy, in addition to Twin Valley. He was the head coach of the Twin Valley boys basketball team that advanced to the Class 1 state finals in 2006, falling to Clarke County, 51-49. He has also served as a football coach in the past, spending two years as head coach of the Panthers.
Moore, who is currently also Twin Valley's athletic director, said the time was right for a change and Richlands was the right place for him. He added that he is looking forward to working with the team at Richlands, a club that finished 9-12 last season, falling to Marion in the opening round of the Southwest District tournament.
It certainly wasn't an easy decision for Moore.
"I am thankful that I can leave with a full heart knowing that I have given so much of myself to the school and community and in return it has done the same for me," Moore said. "It is my home and always will be...
"It is now time to focus on building those same types of relationships at Richlands."