Late legendary basketball coach John Wooden said it best: “A good coach can change a game. A great coach can change a life.”
The 2025-26 school year proved just how true those words still are.
Rebuilds became contenders. Dynasties grew stronger. Cultures changed. Expectations rose. History was made. Legacies were cemented.
These are The Record’s top 12 boys high school coaches of the 2025-26 school year.
Note: This list recognizes coaches of boys programs only.
First-time head coach Eric Crocker leads Stagg to first eight-win season since 2013-14
The road to becoming a head coach rarely follows a straight line. Eric Crocker’s certainly didn’t. From playing in the NFL with the New York Jets to working at Toys “R” Us and Target, then spending years as an assistant and position coach throughout Stockton, Crocker finally got his opportunity at Stagg. He responded by leading the Delta Kings to an 8-3 record, a 6-1 league finish and the program’s first eight-win season since 2013-14, a breakthrough that eventually led to him becoming Edison’s next head coach.
Derek Graves delivers Chavez football’s first undefeated regular season, back-to-back league titles
Few coaching rebuilds happen overnight. Derek Graves nearly pulled one off. After inheriting an 0-10 team at his alma mater in 2024, Graves led Chavez football to its first undefeated league championship in his first season, then followed it with the program’s first undefeated regular season, a second straight league title and its biggest victory in school history before a run to the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division I quarterfinals.
Jason Stock guides East Union football to best season in program history, first section final since 1989
History suggested East Union football wasn’t ready for a breakthrough. Jason Stock didn’t care. In his first season, he guided the Lancers to a 9-4 record and their first CIF Sac-Joaquin Section championship game appearance since 1989 after inheriting a football program with just five winning seasons since 2004 and no more than seven wins in any of them.
St. Mary’s Tony Franks caps 27-year journey with Stockton’s first football state championship
Some championships define a season. Others define a city. Tony Franks delivered the latter. Twenty-seven years into his tenure, Franks accomplished something St. Mary’s couldn’t in nearly 150 years, leading the Rams to a 27-24 victory over Granite Bay on Dec. 12 and Stockton’s first-ever CIF State football championship. Along the way, the historic season also included an 8-2 regular season, a 14th consecutive league title, a third CIF Sac-Joaquin Section championship, a second CIF NorCal championship and Cal-Hi Sports State Coach of the Year honors.
Junior Cueva leads historic season for Tracy basketball with first 20-win campaign
One hundred eight years of Tracy basketball had never produced a 20-win season. Junior Cueva changed that in memorable fashion. He guided the Bulldogs to a 21-9 record, highlighted by a victory over defending CIF State Division I runner-up Lincoln — Tracy’s first over the Trojans since Jan. 24, 2018 — before ending a playoff drought of more than two decades with a road victory over Merced in the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division II first round.
Kelly Power takes Oakdale basketball to new heights with program-record 22 wins
The ending wasn’t what Oakdale basketball hoped for. The season still became the best in program history. After sitting tied for first in the VOL with five games remaining, Kelly Power led the Mustangs to a program-record 22-7 finish in his first year as head coach. It was the program’s first 20-win season after recording just three .500-or-better campaigns over the previous 20 years.
Dalton Ell sparks East Union basketball’s best season in history with first CIF SJS semifinal since 1999
Every milestone East Union basketball had been chasing seemed to fall this season. Dalton Ell was behind them all. The Lancers won a program-record 23 games, finished second in the VOL for their best league finish since 2004 and earned their first home playoff victory since 2004 before knocking off No. 3 Casa Roble to reach their first CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division III semifinal since 1999. Although the run ended against Beyer, it became the program’s deepest postseason run in 26 years.
Eric King validates Venture Academy basketball’s independent gamble with section title game, state berth
Leaving behind a winning formula isn’t common. Eric King did just that. After leading Venture Academy to five consecutive league titles, four straight state tournament appearances and a CIF Sac-Joaquin Section championship in 2023-24, King guided the Mustangs through their first season as an independent. The result was a 25-8 record, a CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV championship game appearance and a fifth consecutive state tournament berth.
Ronnie Green returns East Union soccer to glory with record 24 wins, CIF SJS title
History had already shown what another trip to the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section championship game could mean for East Union soccer. Ronnie Green gave the Lancers another opportunity to chase it. Although the Lancers fell short against Liberty Ranch in the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division III championship, Green led East Union to a school-record 24 wins and called the group “the best winning percentage” team he has ever coached. The season was powered by the nation’s leading goal scorer, Yandel Gutierrez, who finished with 53 goals.
Kevin Tameling continues Ripon Christian volleyball dynasty with fourth section title game in five years
Dynasties aren’t built by one great team. They’re built by replacing one championship group with another. Kevin Tameling has done exactly that at Ripon Christian. Since taking over the boys volleyball program in 2018, the Knights have gone 66-0 in league play and reached four CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division III championship matches in five years, winning titles in 2022, 2023 and 2025.
Jason Lindholm authors another championship chapter for St. Mary’s baseball with sixth CIF SJS title
The bar at St. Mary’s baseball never stays the same—it only gets higher. Jason Lindholm kept the Rams climbing. St. Mary’s repeated as Boras Classic champions, captured a third straight TCAL title and erased the disappointment of the previous year’s Section championship loss by defeating Franklin for its sixth CIF Sac-Joaquin Section Division I title. Even after a first-round exit in the CIF State Division I NorCal playoffs, the Rams finished the season ranked No. 31 in California according to MaxPreps.
Brian Biedermann turns 85 years of heartbreak into Edison baseball’s first league title
For decades, Brian Biedermann watched Edison baseball search for a breakthrough. This time, he helped write it. After seeing the program’s struggles as an assistant principal, principal and eventually head coach, Biedermann led the Vikings to a 21-6 record and a 12-2 league finish, ending 85 years of waiting by capturing the first league championship in school history on April 25.
This article originally appeared on The Record: San Joaquin County’s top 12 boys coaches of the 2025-26 school year
Reporting by Dylan Ackermann, The Stockton Record / The Record
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Dylan Ackermann, The Stockton Record | USA TODAY Network
