After 20 years as a head coach, Jay Wood is stepping away.

At least for now.

Wood informed the Kingfisher High School girls basketball team last Monday that the 2018-19 season was his last. The announcement ends a four-year tenure at his alma mater, during which his teams went 57-51 and reached the area tournament the last three years.

That includes a 14-13 record and a spot in the area consolation quarterfinals in 2019.

Wood will be staying on as athletic director and assistant principal at KHS, roles he assumed this school year.

“I’ve had a wonderful coaching career,” Wood said. “It’s something I wouldn’t change for anything. I am excited about the opportunity of pursuing administrative duties at Kingfi sher.”

Wood came to Kingfisher after a six-year stint at Thomas that culminated with the 2015 Class A state championship. His last five Thomas teams all reached the state tournament.

His coaching career began in 1995 in Mooreland, where he was baseball and girls basketball coach until 2001. His 2000 baseball team was a state quarterfinalist and the 2001 squad a state runner-up.

Wood then spent a year as the girls basketball coach in Tecumseh before serving as Elk City’s coach from 2002-07.

He was the director of the Pioneer Center in Elk City for two years before taking the Thomas job.

There his Lady Terriers were 2A semifinalists in 2011 and 2012 and quarter-finalists in 2013 and 2014.

Thomas moved to Class A prior to the 2015 season.

In all, he’s amassed a 372-165 record and has earned multiple coaching honors including 2015 OGBCA Coach of the Year, 2014 FCA Coach of the Year, 2013 OGBCA Small West All-State coach, 2006 OCA Large West All-State coach and he was a finalist for the 2015 NHSACA National Coach of the Year Award, among many others.

During the last several years of his career, Wood has coached his daughters, Abby, who graduated from Thomas in 2015, and Emma, now a senior at KHS.

Part of his reasons for stepping aside are his son, Sam, a fifth grader at KMS.

“For the last 10 years, I have had one or both of my daughters involved and Sam was caught up in doing what they were doing,” Wood said. “We are going to have some father-son time getting to do what he wants to do and enjoy.

“I’m really looking forward to it.”

That’s not to say Wood won’t miss the game.

“I have made very close friends and bonds with other coaches that are priceless. What I will probably miss more than anything is the camaraderie within the coaching fraternity and the relationships with my players.

“I have extended family now with former players and players’ families that I wouldn’t trade for any amount of money in the world.”

For those reasons, Wood said he won’t rule out returning to the game one day.

“I’m not completely closing the book on ever coaching again right now, but I am confident I’m doing the right thing.”

Wood feels the coach that succeeds him will have some building blocks for the future.

“I feel the program is in better shape than when I got here, player-wise,” he said. “We have great young kids coming up that are really excited about basketball and the freshmen this year were the most athletic class as a whole we have had since I got here.”

However, he also wishes he could have done more to restore one of the proudest programs in the state. Kingfisher has four state championships and 25 state appearances.

However, none have come since the 2009 season, the longest drought since 1970 when KHS was there for the first time in 30 years.

Wood said a change in the approach to the game is needed to restore that tradition.

“Something I have struggled with since being here is getting kids to the gym. It’s not only here, but you are seeing it everywhere,” he said. “Kids want to be great but don’t spend the time necessary to be great and the game is struggling because of it.”

The AAU culture, he said, has led to a downturn in fundamentals.

“Parents and players need to understand that you get better by working on your skills in a gym by yourself, not playing 300 AAU games in the summer,” Wood said.

“A part of that is good, but we are seeing kids’ understanding of the game and the fundamental aspect of the game start to slip because of it. Coaching can be really rewarding when kids buy into a system and work their tails off to improve their game and can be really frustrating when they don’t.

“Unfortunately, in the world we live in now, it is the coach that gets the blame.”

Wood still feels he can help turn around the Kingfisher program, but in a different role, while also making contributions in other areas at KPS.

“Kingfisher is a great place with great people. I am looking forward to doing whatever I can to make sure that all of our coaches, teachers, players and students are successful on the playing field and in the classroom,” he said.

“I always tried to model my coaching in preparing players for life outside of high school with accountability, mental toughness and passion for pursuing your dreams. I will still get to do that, just on a larger scope now.”’

Supt. Jason Sternberger said he posted the coaching position early last week with the teaching position attached to it still up in the air.

He said he’s hopeful he can have a recommendation for the board of education at the April regular meeting.