Quanah has a new football coach and AD, and he brings plenty of experience

Quanah is turning to someone with a quarter century of experience in hiring Mike Bowling as its athletic director and head football coach.

Bowling was given the job this week and met with the Indians on Thursday. Bowling replaces Payton Jackson, a Quanah alum who left last month to become an Electra assistant.

Bowling has spent the past three years as former Brock coach Chad Worrell’s defensive coordinator at El Campo (2021-22) and Burleson (2003). Before that, Bowling spent five seasons at Ponder, including the last two as head coach.

“Quanah was just a good fit for where we are right now in our life,” Bowling said. “I know they’ve had a rough stretch these last couple years, but looking into the job, they’re primed to be on the upswing. I think it’s just good timing. My wife and I are at a point in our lives where we prefer small schools and small towns.”

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In addition to Ponder — where he went 6-14 in 2019-20 — Bowling was also previously a head coach at West Rusk (2004-05) and his alma mater Waco Christian, while also winning a TAPPS state title in 2004 as the offensive coordinator with Waco Reicher.

Bowling said he didn’t know anybody at Quanah before he applied, but that he knew the Indians had a successful history.

“They’ve made deep runs in the playoffs before,” Bowling said. “It piqued my interest as a place that if I were going to pick up and move to, you want to be at a place where football is important and athletics as a whole is important to the town.”

Bowling said he left Ponder to become Worrell’s defensive coordinator because he wanted to learn more about program-building.

“(Worrell) played for G.A. Moore and coached for Butch Ford, and those are two of the best to do it. And so is Chad Worrell,” Bowling said. “I learned a lot for him. It set me up to be in a position to get a job like Quanah which in my opinion is the best athletic director job I’ve had the opportunity to get.”

Quanah is coming off a 1-9 campaign and will spend the next two seasons in District 5-2A Division II with familiar foes Wellington, Clarendon, Shamrock, Memphis and Wheeler.

Bowling said the Indians are going to be multiple on both sides of the ball. Quanah averaged 8.3 points per game in 2023.

“Obviously we will run a system that’s going to fit our kids,” said Bowling, who has four older daughters. “I always tell people if we’ve got the kids to run the ball, that’s probably what we are going to do. If we have kids who can really throw and catch, we’ll lean more toward that.”

With Quanah now filled, Olney is the area’s only current vacancy at the 11-man level. Jason Powers went 3-6 in his lone season leading the Cubs and resigned a week ago to join Borger’s staff.