Elba hires 2 head coaches

It was a busy Tuesday night of coaching hires for the Elba Board of Education.

The board hired Alonzo Barkley as the new boys basketball coach and Betsy White as the new softball coach.

Barkley has been coaching in Enterprise School System the last four years. He replaces Glen Johnson.

White, a former standout at Charles Henderson, Gulf Coast Community College and Lipscomb College, will be in her first coaching job. She replaces Rudy Free.

Elba, however, remained without a head baseball coach as officials look to replace veteran Mike Buckalew, who retired after the season.

Barkley was an assistant coach the last two years with the Enterprise girls basketball team.  He was an assistant for one year on the boys varsity team prior to that and was ninth grade coach in his first year in Enterprise. In addition to basketball duties, he will teach social science and be an assistant coach with Elba football.

“What I try to instill in the kids whether it is the classroom or in basketball is that you can be champion, but you have to really believe it first,” Barkley said. “If you do believe, everything will work out.

“I want to build a family atmosphere and an attitude that you can accomplish big things if you do it together — not as an individual, but as a team unit — and believing we can accomplish it.”

That type of belief helped Barkley earn a scholarship to Alabama-Huntsville then a spot with the Harlem Ambassadors, a professional show basketball team.

He played two years at Mainland High School in Daytona Beach, Fla., before college. While there, he was a teammate of NBA all-star Vince Carter of the New Jersey Nets. The two were part of a state championship team.

On the court, Barkley has a simple philosophy, one that partly demonstrates his concept of belief — that players should believe in their teammates.

“I believe in three things that win games — defense, rebounding and sharing the ball,” Barkley said.

Barkley takes over an Elba program that has struggled recently, going 9-18 two years ago and 10-15 last year. However, a strong nucleus returns for 2008-09 and Barkley feels the Tigers will be roaring.

“I am looking forward to it as this is a great opportunity for me,” Barkley said. “I think people will be surprised by the quick turnaround, but I don’t think the players or the Elba family will be. They know what we have. I feel I can help them reach that potential.”

Barkley earned a degree in sociology at Alabama-Huntsville and a masters in social science from Troy.

“In interviews, Alonzo came across as very sure and confident,” Elba principal Shane Casey said. “His background in basketball was impressive. You could also tell he had a vision for the program and how he wanted to accomplish that vision. That was impressive too.”

White takes over the softball program after several years as a private instructor, the last year with G-Force Competitive Training, which she owns in Elba. She also worked with The Dothan Sports Academy and coached several travel teams in the summer.

She was a standout pitcher/second baseman at Charles Henderson, finishing her senior year in 2000 as the Dothan Eagle Super 12 Player of the Year and earning all-state honors. She also helped the Trojans to the Class 5A state tournament.

White then signed with junior college power, Gulf Coast Community College in Panama City. She earned all-conference honors as a second baseman her first year when Gulf Coast finished as the national runner-up. After two successful years there, she played two years at Division-I Lipscomb in Nashville, Tenn.

White is already familiar with Elba’s softball program, having helped out this past year in practice, dealing mostly with pitchers, catchers and in base running techniques.

“These girls want to be better,” White said. “The main thing is to teach the proper fundamentals. They are all excited about a new face and having someone with Division-I experience.”

She plans to make a lot of changes in the program.

“I am hoping we can make a total overhaul with the program,” White said. “I have gotten a lot of support from the parents and I am willing to ask for their help. My dad (Johnny White) will also help me coach.”

She also plans to make upgrades in the Tigers’ schedule.

“They basically have played games in their class or below, but I want to play games against teams like Hoover, Pelham, Hueytown — the 5A, 6A teams that go to state,” White said. “I feel it will only make the girls better. It shows them what they have to strive for.”

She added she believed Elba could compete with those type teams with more work and confidence.

“These girls could be that caliber,” White said.

White found it a little ironic her first job will be in Elba.

“My dad’s (baseball) career ended in a game at Elba (off an injury) and my career is starting there,” White said.

With a degree in marketing, White will teach vocational classes at Elba.

“Betsy has a lot of experience in softball and we were looking for that,” Casey said. “She will also help us in the classroom.”