Royce Young, who was head football coach and athletic director at Escambia County High School the past three years, has been hired as head girls basketball coach and assistant football coach at Robertsdale High School.
Young’s new job was formally approved during the Baldwin County Board of Education’s Thursday night (July 20) meeting.
Escambia County’s Blue Devils went 4-26 under Young’s tutelage. His tenure represented a three-year span during which the team’s numbers remained inconsistent largely through disciplinary dismissals, player arrests and transfers of key players to other schools, preventing Young and a revolving door of assistants to rebuild the once-proud ECHS program.
The new Robertsdale coach will have his work cut out for him at his new school, too. The Golden Bears girls basketball team finished 13-16 last year, including a 2-7 mark in Region 6A, Area 2 competition.
That team lost several key players, including Breanna Watkins, to graduation. Watkins led the region in points-per-game, rebounds-per-game and blocked shots-per-game last year. He does have several experienced players scheduled to return, including Blakely Laird, who as a freshman was third in the region in blocked shots, and Caitlin Dade, who averaged 7.1 points and 7.8 rebounds.
The Golden Bears football team also struggled, winding up with a record of 2-8 overall, 2-6 in area play. The team, which suffered with a stagnant offense, hopes to count on returners Deandre Prim, who led the team in rushing last year, and Evan Robertson, who was its leading receiver.
Young chose not to issue a statement on his new positions. He did say last week that he and his wife, Dawn, who recently began a new job in Baldwin County, will put their Atmore home on the market next week and will begin preparations to move closer to their jobs.