Long time Pine Prairie coach moves on to a new chapter in his life

For Chris Guillory, the transition from Pine Prairie High School’s head boy’s basketball coach to that same position at Northwest High was not a decision that was taken lightly. According to Guillory, the process took a lot of praying and some sleepless nights.
“I really thought long and hard about moving on to Northwest High School,” stated Guillory. “I really loved it in Pine Prairie, but I needed to do what was best for my family. I talked to my wife about it a lot and prayed about it a lot. If Pine Prairie would not have been like my second home, it would have been an easy decision. What made it harder was that the returning players I had coming back asked me not to leave. But, in the end I think it was the right choice.”
Guillory, a 1994 Vidrine High graduate, started in respiratory school at McNeese when he first attended college.
Guillory walked on the basketball team at McNeese and played for a short period of time.
But, the love of the game of basketball prompted him to getting into the field of education. After graduating from McNeese, Guillory was hired on at Opelousas Catholic for one year.
Yearning to come back home, Guillory was applied for and was give the head boys basketball job at his high school alma mater. He spent two years there before consolidation swallowed up Vidrine High School.
“I was very disappointed when Vidrine closed,” said Guillory. “It was home for me. My daughter was there and I loved it. I really considered leaving the teaching profession after that.”
However, Guillory remained on staff at Vidrine and became an assistant coach at Pine Prairie for the next two years. He was given the opportunity to become a head coach again after the resignation of then Panther head coach Johnny Deshotel. Guillory has been the only head coach that Pine Prairie has known since that time.
“Pine Prairie has been very good to me,” commented Guillory. “I met a lot of people who were helpful and supportive of me. The kids played really hard and worked hard for me. I think we won over 200 years in the 11 years I was there. It has been great to see the kid’s transition from Class B, to 2A to 3A. I wish the players well. I grew as a coach as the team grew. They have been a big part of my life. I would not be the coach today if I had not coached at Pine Prairie.”
One of the major reasons that Guillory decided on moving to the St. Landry based school was the issue of pay.
With the move, Guillory will now make three times more just in coaching pay.
“For me it was time for a fresh breath,” said Guillory. “I had just become tired of the fight of trying to get our pay as coaches raised. I understand that the parish is strapped for money, but we as coaches have made the same salary for the past 30 years. So, after 15 years, sometimes you have to stop and scratch your head and wonder if things will change. There is definitely no ill will toward the parish, but I had to think about the future.”
Northwest will be a new challenge for Guillory, being the new guy on the block and taking over a program that has been semi-successful in the past.
“I am going there not to rebuild a program, but to make my mark on a program that has been on the winning side for a while,” stated Guillory. “My job is to gain the trust of the players and the community. I have met with the players from Northwest and they seem to be good, moral young men. What really sold me on Northwest was the fact that the principal truly seems to care about athletics and the basketball program. That really helps when you have that support.”
One thing is for sure, Evangeline Parish’s loss will truly be St. Landry Parish’s gain.