Longtime Copan hoops coach Kevin Foreman steps away, as Kolton Stacy picks up the reins

Kevin Foreman enjoyed an all-too rare opportunity for a second chance to set his future destiny.

A couple of summers ago, a massive health challenge — which appeared to be life threatening — led to Foreman retiring as Copan High’s boys basketball coach a year before he had planned.

He was reduced to follower status for the 2020-21 season in what he considered to be the start of a permanent retirement from coaching.

But, circumstances dictated otherwise.

Following a few more months of recovery and regaining full strength, Foreman jumped in the saddle again to coach the Copan Hornets for the 2021-22 campaign.

It turned out to be a winning decision — the mostly rebuilding Copan team finished 12-11 with a mix that many people wondered going into the season whether it could win five or six games.

Copan recorded its final win in a 94-91 overtime thrilling playoff upset of Varnum.

Although bidding good-bye to his two biggest impact players, Correll Record and Tyrek Millien, as well as other significant senior talent, it appeared as if Foreman was on the verge of revving up a new Hornet hoops renaissance.

That might be the case — only Foreman won’t be there to lead it.

Foreman announced this week he is retiring and turning the reins over to new, youthful leadership.

This time, Foreman steps away on his own terms and according to his own timing.

Former Oklahoma Union High standout athlete Kolton Stacy has been hired as the new head boys basketball coach.

He’s the right man to help navigate Copan hoops into the future, said Foreman, who will make the segue from sideline to spectator seat.

“I’m been thinking about it (retirement) for quite some time,” Foreman told the E-E on Wednesday. “I’m healthy and I could keep going. I feel the best I’ve ever felt. But, I felt it's the right time for someone young to come in and take over.”

Starting with next year’s sophomore class, Copan eyes major basketball potential down to the fourth grade, Foreman said.

He said he wanted a young coach that would be with this cycle throughout their Copan high school career.

Ideally, Foreman said he would have liked to have coached another year or two, but said he decided it wouldn’t be fair to quit when next year’s freshmen are juniors.

The timing of this new infusion of skilled athletes convinced him this was the time for a change of leadership.

“I never intended to say as long as the younger kids,” Foreman said. “I had intended to coach the next couple of years … but I didn’t think I wanted to coach another four years. … It’s the right time. He’s (Stacy) the perfect one. He brings a lot of energy, he brings a lot of knowledge and I think he’ll do great with them.”

Foreman has been a lifelong associate with Stacy’s family, competing against some of them during his playing days and developing a respect for the entire clan.

“Kolton comes from a great family,” Foreman said. “They have good values. … He’s a really good, nice young man. He’s got really good values. He’ll have a really good influence on the younger kids.”

Foreman had served many years during his younger years as a Hornet coach, primarily as a volunteer assistant. He stepped away for a few years, but came back as head coach after the Hornet program hit bottom with a winless season.

Foreman’s guidance had an immediate positive impact as the squad won five games his first season, 10 games his second season and continued to get better.

The Hornets experienced some ebbs and tides due to graduation and breaking in new players but continued to be a competitive program.

Foreman’s massive medical challenges in the summer of 2020, seemed to signal the forced end of his days in the No. 1 chair.

But, he made it back to lead Copan back to a winning season and build confidence for the future, although the Hornets might still experience some growing pains the next season or two.

Stacy will be in charge of massaging the program through that process.

“I think they hit a home run in hiring Kolton,” Foreman said.

Even though he’s still a few years away from his 10th high school reunion, Stacy already has garnered plenty of coaching experience at Wesleyan Christian School.

He graduated in 2015 from Oklahoma Union, following a stellar student-athlete career in basketball and baseball.

Stacy proceeded to play college basketball at Northern Oklahoma College-Tonkawa and played a semester for Bethel (Kan.) College.

He then switched to Oklahoma Wesleyan University to finish up his degree.

Stacy spent the next few years at Wesleyan Christian. He started coaching on the middle-school level and also helped coach the high school boys basketball team.

Stacy worked with the Mustang baseball team, as well.

After that, “I got out of it (coaching) for a year, to step back and reflect on things I need to do better at,” he said. “Then his opportunity came up.”

Stacy actually had been hired by Oklahoma Union High, but then the Copan job came open.

“It was a little better opportunity that presented itself, so I figured, why not?” Stacy said.

He credits Copan superintendent Chris Smith and principal Jerry Werts with being a major part of his decision.

“They made it feel like home. … It’s not like a foreign feeling,” Stacy said. “I see myself as staying quite a while at Copan. Anything I need they’re (Smith and Werts) just a phone call way. That’s what honestly kind of struck me is their people at the top. They’re second to none. They don’t have an administrator’s way of acting. … They’re just good people.”

But, Stacy also remains close to his Oklahoma Union roots.

He’s been in constant contact with his former Cougar basketball coach Lee Ott about the opportunity.

“He had a big influence on what I wanted to do as far as playing at the next level and becoming a coach,” Stacy said. “I like his philosophies. I like his offense that he ran.”

Among the Ott style of play the Stacy wants to incorporate includes playing man-to-man pressure defense and offensive versatility.

“We’re not going to sit back in a 2-3 zone or a 3-2 zone,” Stacy said. “We’re going to pressure the ball, trap, run and run and shoot. Or, being able to pull the ball out and playing ball control.”

Stacy paid heartfelt tribute to Foreman for his impact on Hornet basketball.

“He’s amazing what he’s done,” said Stacy, who during his playing days battled against Foreman’s Copan teams. “He kind of paved the way for me. He said that ‘You and I are similar for pushing the kids to get the most of them.’ He said, ‘You were my first request.’”

In looking at the short-term and mid-term future, Stacy welcomes back highly-skilled sophomores-to-be Levi Vanschuyver and Carson Whitworth, both integral parts of last season’s success.

A powerful incoming freshman class is led by Shooter Brewington, Kane Foreman and Weston O’Rourke.

“Give it a couple of years and this Copan group would be really something special,” Stacy said.

Stacy’s major challenge now is patience to get through the next few months until basketball time arrives.

“I’m just pumped up,” he said. “I’m excited for the opportunity. The administration is great, Copan is excited and coach Foreman is excited for the future.”

This article originally appeared on Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise: Kolton Stacy takes over as Copan boys basketball coach