Page 42 - 2019 PHS Football MG

Pearland Football 2019

HEAD COACH RICKY TULLOS

A new legacy is being established

By Dr. David Davis

s in anything in life – starting something new is always a challenge. In 2018, Pearland new
Ahead coach Ricky Tullos began a new journey at the helm of the Oilers football program.

Another challenge when beginning a new journey is
the possibility of having to follow someone who had
established a standard of success and one who had
left a legacy of expectations. For Ricky Tullos – it
was following in the footsteps of former Pearland
head coach Tony Heath who retired from the Oilers,
after 20 years, as the winningest coach in Pearland
football history.

While that may appear as an incredible obstacle
and challenge in the beginning, one has to remem-
ber that Tullos had left his own mark at his previous
school – Richmond George Ranch High School.

Tullos didn’t arrive in Pearland without having been
on the big stage of competition. The veteran coach had already established his own style of
leading a coaching staff and high school players to success. And he arrived in Pearland with
his own style and confidence that would continue the winning tradition that he had previously
experienced while also maintaining the winning tradition that Pearland had come to expect and
know.

The coaching journey began for coach Tullos when he became the head coach at Cleveland
High School (TX). He established his winning ways by posting a 24-10 mark over a three-year
stretch.

In 2011, Richmond George Ranch was searching for a
new head coach. The school opened in 2010 and the
death of the head coach placed them in a position to find a
new leader. Tullos arrived to breathe a winning tradition in
the young school.

From 2011 to 2017, Tullos led the Longhorns on an histor-
ic and memorable journey that included a trip to the 2015
Class 5A Division I throne room for a 16-0 mark and a
state championship.
In 2016 and 2017, George Ranch moved up to Class 6A
with trips to the post-season both years. Those would be the final two seasons for Tullos before
departing for Class 6A Pearland High School.

40 www.pearlandoilers.com