Aledo ISD head football coach Tim Buchanan, athletic director Steve Wood retiring
PARKER COUNTY (CBSDFW.COM) - Aledo ISD announced Friday morning that coach Tim Buchanan and athletic director Steve Wood will retire at the end of the school year.
Assistant head coach and offensive coordinator Robby Jones was promoted to head football coach.
Buchanan spent 30 years at Aledo (25 as head coach) and 40 years in public education and coaching overall, according to the district.
"We will most certainly miss Coach Buc on our sidelines at Aledo," Superintendent Dr. Susan Bohn said. "In 30 years, he has created a culture and a community of Bearcats who are extremely proud. His high expectations, his extreme preparation, and his desire to see each student-athlete in his program succeed are just a few of the reasons that he'll retire as one of the most decorated and respected coaches in Texas state football history."
The announcement comes just six weeks after the Bearcats won their UIL-record 11th state title 52-14 over College Station at AT&T Stadium on Dec. 17, 2022.
Buchanan - who amassed a 281-58-3 coaching record - won eight state championships, which ranks tied for second behind the 11-man state record holders Carthage's Scott Surratt and Gordon Wood (Brownwood/Stamford). G.A. Moore also won eight state titles at Pilot Point and Celina.
"I am proud of the work we've done and, honestly, I do sometimes step back and say, 'wow' as I think of all of the coaches, administrators, trainers, parents, student-athletes and so many more who have been a part of something so special as what we have in Aledo," Buchanan said.
Buchanan finishes with 20 seasons with double-digit wins and two undefeated seasons. His only losing season was his first, in 1993. Buchanan went 8-0 in state title games, winning in 1998, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2019, 2020 and 2022. During his five years as Aledo ISD athletics director when former defensive coordinator Steve Wood took over as head coach, the Bearcats won three more state titles (2014, 2016, 2018).
Aledo's 11 state football titles are an all-time UIL record regardless of classification. Between Buchanan and Wood, Aledo has a 111-game district win streak that's still active; Aledo's last district loss was on October 5, 2007.
"I am honored to have been able to work with Coach Buc over the last 18 years and to have seen first-hand the impact he's made on thousands of young student-athletes," Aledo High School principal Angi Tims said. "His student-athletes are not only good football players but also good students and representatives of Aledo High School. He has set a very high standard for excellence. We're going to miss him but wish him nothing but the very best in retirement."
Buchanan will be inducted into the Texas High School Coaches Association Hall of Honor this summer in Houston during the THSCA Coaching School and Convention. Prior to Aledo, Buchanan was an assistant coach at Bastrop (1984), Killeen Ellison (1985, 1987), The Colony (1986) and A&M Consolidated (1988-1992) where he won the 1991 Class 4A state title as an assistant coach.
Wood, has worked for 21 years as defensive coordinator at Aledo ISD, head football coach and athletics director.
His retirement comes after 42 years in education. Wood had other stops in his career as a teacher and assistant football coach at Port Lavaca High School (1981-1984), Pasadena Dobie High School (1985-1992) and Saginaw Boswell High School (1993-2001).
He became Buchanan's assistant head football coach and defensive coordinator in 2002, then was promoted to head football coach from 2014-2018 while Buchanan stepped away from coaching to become Aledo ISD's athletics director. Wood's Bearcat teams won three state championships (2014, 2016, 2018) in four title game appearances. Wood amassed a 75-4 record in five seasons.
"I have so many memories and proud moments from 42 years in education, and these last 21 years in Aledo have been unforgettable," Wood said. "What we have been able to accomplish is remarkable, and I have enjoyed being a part of it as an assistant coach, a head coach and an athletics director. I will certainly miss our kids and getting to know them and cheer them on, but I will be a Bearcat for life."
Wood and Buchanan flipped positions before the 2019 season with Wood becoming the district's athletics director and Buchanan returning to the sidelines as AHS head football coach. Wood won four state titles as an Aledo assistant coach (2009, 2010, 2011, 2013), three as the Bearcats head coach (2014, 2016, 2018), and three as athletics director (2019, 2020, 2022) for 10 total state titles.
"I am so grateful for the impact Steve Wood has had on our athletics program in Aledo," Bohn said. "I have seen it time and again his love for our student-athletes and coaches, and his genuine interest in the success of both. To know him is to love him. We'll definitely miss his leadership but wish him well in his much-deserved retirement after 42 years in education and his 21 years in service to his Bearcats."
