Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Toombs Named State's Top AD

Johnny Toombs of Arkansas High School in Texarkana has been named the state's athletic director of the year by the Arkansas High School Athletic Administrators Association.

The other finalists were Don Sharpe of Sheridan, Richard Payton of Lake Hamilton and Bryon Bryant of Geona Central.

This year's voting took place at the two-day Arkansas Athletic Administrators annual conference in Hot Springs February 11-12.

Toombs is currently president of the Athletic Administrators Association. Toombs is a 1961 graduate of Gurdon High School. He received his bachelor's degree from Henderson State University in 1967 and his master's degree in education administration from East Texas State University in 1979.

He was inducted into the Gurdon High School Hall of Fame in 1997.

Prior to joining the Texarkana staff, Toombs served as head basketball coach and assistant football coach at Foreman High School from 1973-76.

Toombs coached in Texas from 1976 through 1989. In 1976 he served as athletic director and head football coach at Paul Pewitt High School in Omaha, Texas. From 1980 through 1984 he served as assistant principal and athletic director at Pleasant Grove in Texarkana, Texas, from 1984-89.

Toombs currently serves as athletic director and head football coach for Texarkana. He has served in that capacity since 1989 and has an overall football coaching record of 76-27-1.

While competing in the AAAA South Conference Toombs' 1990 Razorbacks ended the year at 13-1 and as the Class AAAA state runner-up. His 1996 Texarkana squad won the AAAA- South Conference title.

Toombs was the head coach of the West squad in the 1991 Arkansas High School Coaches Association All-Star Game.

During his career, Toombs has been named coach of the year nine times. He received the Distinguished Service Award from the Athletic Directors in 1994. He also received the State Award of Merit in 1997.

Toombs has been a member of the AHSAAA for nine years, and has attended four NIAAA National Conferences.

Texarkana was the state finalist for the Sportsmanship Award in 1993 and the school won the AAAA-South Conference All Sports Award in 1994-1995 and 1997.

Toombs oversees three campuses for 10 sports and 39 teams. Since Toombs joined the Texarkana staff, the school has won 23 conference championships and six state titles.