By Robert Wilson
The high school basketball coaching genius in Southwest Hinds County – otherwise known as Tony “Terrific” Tadlock – is at it again.
The Raymond High boys basketball coach lost his entire starting five for the second straight year and appears on his way to make a run at another state championship.
Tadlock might be the only coach in the country who has done this – taken his team to the state championship game in each of his eight seasons at Raymond and won five state titles and the last two in a row.
And he’s gearing up to do it again, and without a returning starter – again.
Raymond – ranked No. 26 in Mississippi and No. 3 among MHSAA Class 4A teams by MaxPreps – has a 15-6 overall record and is 2-0 in Class 4A, Region 6 play going to Tuesday night’s district game against Mendenhall at home.
Tadlock, a 37-year-old Pearl High and Southern Miss graduate, has an amazing 233-55 record (an 80.9 percent winning percentage) and five state championships and three state runner-up finishes in his ninth year at Raymond. He also was an assistant coach on Meridian’s state championship team before he came to Raymond. Tadlock was an assistant for six years at Meridian, five under now Copiah-Lincoln Community College coach Randy Bolden and one under Ron Norman. Tadlock won 52 straight games as a ninth-grade coach at Meridian.
Tadlock was the Mississippi Scoreboard Metro Jackson Coach of the Year two years ago when he led Raymond to a 31-4 record and another state title. He was one of eight finalists for National Coach of the Year.
“We had a plan nine years ago and we haven’t deviated from that plan,” Tadlock said. “We are built on family. We have a culture that’s second to none. Our guys understand their roles and they play their roles according to a championship standard. From the classroom, weight room, the court, everything we do has to align to be a champion.”
Regardless of the experience or lack there of, Raymond is always there in the end. And it appears the Rangers own their way to another deep playoff run.
“We lost eight seniors, and all five starters from last year,” Tadlock said. “Senior point guard Keyonn Downs is averaging 12 points, 4.7 assists and 3 steals this season. Junior shooting guard Miles Norman is averaging 14.4 points, 4 rebounds and 2.3 assists. Senior forwards Nick Jones and Kenneth Turner – both 6-foot-4 – are monsters on the glass that have had multiple double figure rebounding games. Both average over seven rebounds per game game. Kennth Turner is my other starter. He’s a really good defender. We are deep on our bench. We can play 10 plus guys each night. Three freshmen – Bryson Dixon, Kylon Graves and Melvin Rhodes – and seniors Tanari Stewart and Jacob Killingsworth along with sophomore Markel Thomas come off the bench. Along with some other guys, this gives me a strong bench. We are able to go deep and that will help come playoff time.”
Although Tadlock has an outstanding winning percentage, he doesn’t shy away from scheduling difficult opponents. This year is no exception. He has played larger schools like MHSAA Class 7A Clinton, Murrah and Meridian, MHSAA Class 6A Ridgeland, Terry, Callaway, Canton, and Warren Central, MHSAA Class 5A Provine and Lanier and two Arkansas teams in the King Cotton Classic.
“We schedule tough early on,” Tadlock said. “We always have. I don’t really care about padding wins early. I want to be battled tested come playoff time. That’s the only way you will win come March.”
Tadlock – who doubles as the director of competitive excellence for the Hinds County School District – is assisted by Richard Caston, Stanley Dixon, Satoria McPhearson and Martavin McWilliams.
Tadlock isn’t the only person who has made their mark in Mississippi sports in his family.
Tadlock’s late father Tony – who passed away in 1988 – was the first white football player at Jackson State in 1975.
Tadlock’s father broke the color barrier in 1975 and played long snapper as a freshman, then worked his way up and started on the offensive line as junior along beside former Wingfield High star Jackie Slater, who went on to have an NFL Hall of Fame career with the Los Angeles Rams.
The elder Tadlock was working with the Flowood Fire Department when he passed away putting out a fire in 1988 at the age of 30 years old. Tony’s mom, Holly Clark, was pregnant with Tony when his father passed away. Tony was raised by his mom with help from his grandparents, Jean and Ralph Tadlock. Tony has photos of his father in his JSU uniform and at the Flowood Fire Dept. Tadlock’s name is on the wall of the National Fire Academy and on the memorial wall at the Mississippi State Fire Academy. The Flowood Fire Dept. has a monument in front of Station One that his name and image.
His son has carried on his legacy of hard work, determination, and drive with his basketball program.
“Being able to carry on my dad’s legacy is something I’ve always cherished,” Tadlock said. “He used his platform to save others by putting his heart and soul into being a fireman. As a coach, I felt the same way. I’ve always given my guys the best opportunities and love that I could.”
Tadlock encourages his players even after they finish playing basketball for him at Raymond. He visits his former players who are playing in college whenever he can. Tadlock might be king of social media among high school coaches in Mississippi, always keeping Ranger fans up to date on what’s going on with his program.
Tadlock has sent 19 players to college programs and two more have played college baseball and one college football. He currently has three playing in college – EJ Paymon at Southern Miss, Tremaine Dixon at Mississippi College and Jadyn Garrett at Jones County Junior College and two playing professionally – Jakorie Smith in Iceland and Travis Thompson in Brazil.
“We promote a sense of family within our program and that never stops once you leave,” Tadlock said. “We tell our guys that you graduate from Raymond High School, but you never graduate from our program. We promote our guys through social media and go check out their games. It’s a great feeling to see them furthering their education doing something they love.”
Tadlock’s successful run is one of the best in Mississippi history.
“One thing I never wanted to do when I got to Raymond was to be a one hit wonder,” Tadlock said. “To be respected as a coach, you need to prove that you can build and maintain a program over the long haul. It takes an all-out buy in from everyone and we have been blessed with that. One of the biggest accomplishments is being able to send so many guys to college over the years. It’s more than just basketball with us. It’s about growing each individual person within our program to be better people through the game of basketball.”
