Local legend Tucker steps down at GC; Broom takes the reins for boys program
If there has been one constant when it comes to prep basketball in Gordon County and the surrounding areas over the past four decades, its legendary head coach Ray Tucker patrolling the sidelines and implementing the game’s fundamentals while shaping the lives of young athletes.
After piecing together an illustrious and distinguished career that spanned over 600 games coached, Tucker has recently decided to step down from his latest coaching position at Gordon Central and retire from coaching basketball to focus more on spending time with family.
Tucker was most notably one of the most decorated head basketball coaches in Calhoun High School history. From 1979- 2004, his team’s remarkably posted a 426-223 record. His Jackets racked up an astonishing 11 state tournament appearances, finished as state runner- up once, appeared in the Final Four on another occasion and reached the Elite Eight round three times.
His Calhoun hoops squads snagged three region championships and one regular-season championship.
“We went on some really good runs at Calhoun,” Tucker said. “It’s just wonderful to see the kids, especially my own kids when they played, be successful. It was really always a big thrill.”
Speaking of his own kids, his sons Ray III, David and Craig also played a crucial role in his legacy by taking part in 19 state tournaments of their own in various sports. Ray III has also logged his time coaching with his father, reaching three basketball and three golf state tournaments.
Tucker’s influence not only resonated on the hardwood, but on the golf course as well. Tucker spent 20 successful seasons as the varsity golf coach, clinching one state title, one state runner- up, five region championships and 13 state tournaments.
Tucker collected many personal accolades during his various coaching tenures, securing a “Coach of the Year” honor from the Chattanooga Times Free Press and landing on the Atlanta TipOff Club’s “Georgia’s Winningest Basketball Coaches” list. He was also the State Golf Coach of the Year in 1976 and 1977.
His status as a local sports legend was cemented when he earned a spot in the inaugural class of the Calhoun-Gordon County Sports Hall of Fame in 2015.
“The great support you get from the community has been one the most outstanding features of coaching,” Tucker said.
Although a coach doesn’t collect those kinds of accomplishments without a robust knowledge of the insand-outs of the sport and an ability to communicate them to the players they are responsible for leading, Tucker credits the majority of his success to his wife, Pamela.
“Pam is the rock of our family,” Tucker said. “I wouldn’t have made the contributions that I did without her.”
Tucker also spent abbreviated coaching stints at Lafayette High School, his alma mater where he was a standout basketball and golf player, and Armuchee High School. In 2014, he was named head coach of the Gordon Central basketball program.
Even though Tucker’s Warriors didn’t always get the results on the scoreboard that they desired, his veteran leadership altered the lives of the student athletes in ways that aren’t always apparent in a box score.
“Ray brought so much experience of the game and life in general,” Gordon Central principal Doug Clark said. “He impacted the lives of the players more than they’ll realize for years to come. He did a fabulous job for us, just like he did everywhere else he has been.”