DeSoto ISD Board welcomes back Claude Mathis

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By David McNabb

DeSoto will re-hire football coach Claude Mathis on Monday after the DeSoto ISD board of trustees unanimously voted Saturday morning to allow Mathis' Jan. 17 resignation to be rescinded. Mathis announced he'd be leaving DeSoto to become an assistant at the University of Houston at the team banquet on Jan. 15. After two weeks at Houston, Mathis had a change of heart and resigned at Houston.

Because DeSoto had already posted the new position, there were several administrative steps needed before he could formally return to DeSoto and the next to last step was the board vote to approve an action by the DeSoto ISD administration.

Mathis has been at DeSoto since the 2008 season and guided the Eagles to several high profile playoff runs. DeSoto went four rounds deep in the 2010 playoffs under the 37-year-old Mathis.
Mathis arrived at DeSoto from Austin LBJ coach Claude Mathis, where the former record-setting running back at Texas State revived a struggling program to reach the Class 4A Region I finals in 2007. Mathis replaced Dave Meadows before the 2008 season and DeSoto made the playoffs each year under Mathis, being eliminated three times in the second round by Dallas powerhouse Skyline,
DeSoto had a 36-14 in four seasons, making the state quarterfinals in 2010 before losing to Round Rock Stony Point in the Region II final and ending with an 11-3 record. Mathis told his players at the annual football banquet of his plans to move to college coaching. DeSoto was 10-2 last season with a second-round loss to Skyline.