Rex Parker has not only retired from teaching physical education at Lebanon High School, but he has relinquished his role as head girls basketball coach he’s held since 1996. After calling the shots for the Pioneers on the sidelines that long, what is next for Rex?
“Golfing, fishing and watching my son [Chance] play baseball,” Parker said.
It is a well-deserved farewell for a guy who was popular among his players and fellow competitors.
“Rex Parker has been a fixture at Lebanon High School for four decades,” said Lebanon principal Ryan Potts. “As a coach he was a tremendous representative for our school and community, and you would be hard pressed to find a nicer person in Southwest Virginia. Coach Parker has truly left his mark on [the program] and will be sorely missed by students and players alike.”
A Lebanon graduate who played hoops for the Pioneers, Parker took over for Kim Hooker at the helm in 1996 (when VHSL Group A and Group AA girls basketball was played in the fall) following eight seasons as an assistant.
“We went 0-21 my first year and lost the first nine games my second year,” Parker said. “But we started making some progress and the next year we made the region tournament for the first time in more than 20 years. I never thought I would stay this long.”
His best season came during the 2005-06 campaign as the Pioneers compiled a 21-8 record, finished as Region C runner-up to Floyd County and lost to eventual state champion Gate City in the Group A state quarterfinals.
After finishing second in the Hogoheegee District to George Wythe that winter, Lebanon put together a memorable postseason run highlighted by a 53-52 overtime win over Narrows in the regional semifinals as guard Kari Jackson scored Lebanon's final 27 points in a dramatic victory at Virginia High’s Bearcat Den.
Parker coached in the Highlands, Hogoheegee, Clinch Mountain and Southwest Districts as Lebanon frequently changed leagues and bounced back and forth between the state’s smallest classification and the second-smallest classification.
Through it all, Parker kept his positive vibes and was in it for the right reasons. For example, he said he had no idea what his career record wound up.
His squad went 4-15 this past winter and lost to Richlands in the first round of the Southwest District tournament.
What will he remember about his lengthy stint leading the Pioneers?
“Just being able to turn the program around and make us competitive most years and being around all of the different players over the years,” Parker said.
Only Wise County Central’s Robin Dotson owned a longer tenure coaching girls hoops among active coaches in far Southwest Virginia.
Dotson and Parker’s teams met on more than one occasion.
“Rex is one of the good guys in coaching,” Dotson said “He always had a smile on his face and has always been a good guy to talk to and a good friend. We have played quite a few times over the years, and his teams always were difficult to defend, as they executed their offense to perfection it seemed. Also, of all the teams I've played over the years, his were the hardest to press.”
You can catch Parker at plenty of baseball games this spring and in the future as his son, Chance, is a senior at Lebanon and one of the top hitters in the area who has committed to play the sport at the University of Virginia’s College at Wise.
There aren't many coaching lifers like Parker left.
“I was able to stay in it a long time, because I never got too high or too low,” Parker said. “I was able to stay the same through the good and the bad. I am sure I am going to miss it when the first of November comes around.”