The text messages were piling in on Torey Noel’s phone.

Noel and a couple of his friends and former colleagues had learned the Midwest City boys basketball coaching position had opened. Noel, who was a star player at Midwest City before becoming an assistant there and at Choctaw, was conflicted about if he should go after the job.

But each text he received insisted he’d give it a try.

“Choctaw had shown me so much love,” Noel said. “They brought me in with open arms, they took care of me. But people kept saying, ‘It’s your turn.’ So, I ended up going for it.”

Noel was recently announced as the Midwest City boys basketball coach.

“I’m still in shock,” Noel said. “I’m excited. I got a lot of emotions right now. A lot of people have been reaching out, congratulating me, and are happy for me. I’m definitely excited.”

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In 2014 as a senior, Noel was named the Mid-State Most Valuable Player after averaging more than 15 points per game for the state semifinalist Bombers. It was the last season of the conference before it and the Metro Conference were transformed into the Central Oklahoma Athletic Conference and the Oklahoma Big 10 Conference.

After high school, Noel continued his basketball career at Lamar from 2016-18. Through two seasons, Noel averaged 4.8 points, 2.8 assists, 1.6 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game.

As a player, Noel was known as one of the leaders of Midwest City’s full-court defensive press. As a coach, he’s ready to bring that style of play with him but says he’s flexible in his coaching.

“I also want to just put something that’s going to work for the boys,” Noel said. “If that’s what it is, that’s what we’re going to go to. Just adjust and learn the guys and learn what they’re good at so I can put them in good situations.”

Noel served as an assistant basketball coach at Midwest City for four years before heading to Choctaw. Noel will succeed Corky McMullen, who resigned from the position after three seasons.

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Carl Albert hires new softball coach

Garrett Wages couldn’t stop smiling.

Carl Albert Athletic Director Mike Dunn had called Wages into his office to deliver some news.

After two years of serving as the assistant coach for the softball and baseball teams, Wages was named the new head softball coach.

“I’m excited,” Wages said. “It’s been a grind. I’ve been patient, been waiting my time. Hopefully, I can get a few state championships here, bring them back to Carl Albert.”

Wages played baseball at Carl Albert from 2011-14, helping the Titans win three straight Class 5A state titles. He then took his talents to Oklahoma Christian where he was a three-year starter, playing shortstop and third base. He batted .271 and had a .900 fielding percentage throughout his career.

After graduating in 2019, Wages became the Midwest City high school assistant baseball coach for one year before he received a call from former Carl Albert coach Colin White. Wages has served as an assistant softball and baseball coach since 2020. He’ll now take over the reins, succeeding Dani Dobbs.

“I want to make sure they practice hard every day and come to the field with a purpose,” Wages said. “I don’t want them to leave anything for granted, that’s how I played coming up in high school and in college. Just coming to the field trying to get better each and every day.”

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Piedmont elevates Joe Crawford to head girls basketball coach

Piedmont has chosen a familiar face to lead its girls basketball program.

Joe Crawford, a Piedmont assistant since 2019, has been promoted to head coach, Piedmont Public Schools announced in a Wednesday release. He succeeds Eric Carr, who is moving to the town of Eufaula after five seasons at Piedmont.

The Wildcats won a Class 5A state title during Crawford’s first season on staff, so he is dreaming big as he takes over the program.

“I want there to be a legacy and a tradition established for kids in the community of Piedmont,” Crawford said. “You can look around the state of Oklahoma, and you know where the basketball schools are … that’s what I want to establish in Piedmont.”

The tradition starts in Crawford’s family.

His youngest daughter, Kenley, will be a freshman on the team next year. This means Crawford will have had the chance to coach all four of his daughters as either an assistant or head coach at Piedmont.

Older daughters Regan and Delanie, who won the 2019 title together, are now playing at Harding University and Tulsa. Jillian, a Piedmont senior, has signed with Southern Nazarene.

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As their coach and director of AAU organization Team Oklahoma, Crawford has set an example for his daughters.

“The way that I coach is basically just built on hard work,” Crawford said. “Winning is obviously a priority, but to be someone who wins, you have to be dedicated to your discipline, to your art form, whatever that is.”

He took this approach at Oklahoma Christian Academy, where he coached in 2014 after several years away from school ball. The Eagles went 2-17 in his first season, and he was asking members of the cheer squad and students in the hallways to join just so they had enough players to field a team.

The next year, they were 18-7 with no more losing seasons for the rest of his time there.

At Piedmont, Crawford has been on staff for Carr’s five winning seasons. Most recently, the Wildcats went 19-8, advancing to area.

Calling his new job “one of the best in the state,” Crawford encouraged fans to support the program and visit the new Wildcat Athletic Center, which opened in December.

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Greg Johnson fills in as head football coach at Putnam West

Greg Johnson had been out of the coaching game for a few years and was living in Florida when one of his former players reached out to him with an opportunity.

Willis Alexander had just accepted the head football coaching job at Putnam West.

Alexander — mainly an offensive-minded coach — needed a defensive coordinator for the 2022 season.

“He knew that my mom was sick,” Johnson said. “Basically, he was trying to get me back home. And I accepted the offer, my mom passed away and six months later, he ended up leaving, taking the job at PCO (Putnam City Original).”

Now, it’s Johnson’s turn to lead the Patriots.

Johnson was recently named Putnam West’s head coach, taking over a Class 6A-II program that got three victories last season after finishing with a winless record the previous three years.

Johnson has extensive coaching experience, particularly at the collegiate level.

He had two head coaching stints at Langston University and is a member of its Athletic Hall of Fame.

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Johnson coached Alexander at Langston and said Alexander did a great job of helping revitalize Putnam West football.

“He brought some life back into the program in the short time he was here,” Johnson said. “I saw, from the Summer Pride program until the last game in November, I saw a big turnaround in the kids.

“We were very young, very inexperienced, hadn’t had a lot of success in two or three years — some of the same things I had went through when I was at Langston University.”

Putnam West had just three seniors this past season.

Johnson expects to have 15 seniors in 2023.

Among the Patriots’ top players are junior receiver and defensive back Mykel Ford and seniors Aaron Edwards (receiver and linebacker), Cornelius Grisby (receiver), Shyheim Johnson (quarterback) and Jordan Warrior (receiver and defensive back).

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This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma high school basketball coaching hires for 2023 offseason