Staff Report
NewsWest 9
ODESSA - A Texas legend is hanging up his whistle. Coach Gary Gaines was the head football coach for Permian High for a total of eight years.
It may not seem like a very long time but it's what he did in those eight years that counts.
In two separate four year stints at Permian High School, Gary Gaines made a name for himself by coaching up some of Permian's greatest teams including the 1988 team profiled in the infamous book, Friday Night Lights, and his 1989 Class 5A State Championship team.
On Tuesday after his second four year stint with the program, Gaines retired from his head coaching position.
His second go around at Permian was not nearly as successful as the first.
After winning 46 games in his first four seasons, the Panthers only went 23-21 over the past four years with only one playoff victory.
Gaines cites these struggles as one of the reasons he's hanging it up.
"It's been a special school to me and my family. The reason I'm retiring is that we haven't done what I expected us to be able to do in terms of wins and losses. When you're a .500 football team, I think Permian deserves better than that and we need a new face for the program," Gaines said.
