Mark James resigns as Perry Meridian basketball coach: 'I don’t think I’m done yet.'
Mark James submitted his retirement as a Perry Meridian teacher Thursday and informed the administration and basketball team he was resigning his position as coach.
That does not mean, necessarily, that the 68-year-old James is done coaching.
“I don’t think I’m done yet,” James said. “I would like to get a couple more years, but it has to be a good fit.”
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James coached five seasons at Perry Meridian, going 40-69 with the Falcons. Before that, he led Ben Davis for seven years, winning a Class 4A state championship in 2017 and coached 26 seasons at Franklin Central after starting out at Covington for three years. James has 599-352 record overall in 41 seasons.
Perry Meridian athletic director Emily Steinmetz joked she tried to avoid James on Thursday, knowing the news was probably coming. But even still she said she “spent most of the day in tears.”
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“There are better men in our community because of coach James,” she said. “More than the wins, that is what he will be remembered for.”
James said he thought the program was starting to turn the corner prior to the COVID-19 pandemic at the end of the 2019-20 season. Led by Jayden Taylor, the Falcons went 12-9 the following season, but slipped back to 8-14 last season and 4-18 this year.
James said if he does get back into coaching, he would like to do it with a program that is established and has some tradition. Every job he has taken during his career was in something of a rebuilding mode.
“I don’t get the impression he is done coaching,” Steinmetz said. “We tried to talk him out of leaving, but I think he felt like it was time for him to do something different. He’s a man of integrity and we’re thankful for the time we had him here.”
Call Star reporter Kyle Neddenriep at (317) 444-6649.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana high school basketball: Mark James resigns at Perry Meridian
