By Blake Colston
Sports Editor
Piedmont didn’t have to look far to find its next girls basketball coach.
The Piedmont School Board on Wednesday morning approved the promotion of assistant Joe Crawford to head coach, effective immediately. Crawford replaces Eric Carr, who resigned following the season.
“We are thrilled to introduce Coach Crawford as our new women’s basketball coach and are excited to see how he builds upon the program’s success,” said Matt Bilyeu, Director of Athletics and Activities. “Coach Crawford has a proven track record of building positive relationships with student-athletes and is highly respected in the Oklahoma basketball community. Since joining Piedmont, he and his family have become involved in the school district and community. We are confident in the future of the program under his leadership.”
Crawford had served as Carr’s top assistant since 2018-2019 after he came to Piedmont following a stint as head girls coach at Oklahoma Christian Academy in Edmond, where he compiled a 75-40 record in four seasons. Crawford was also the head boys coach at OCA from 2016-2018 and led the Eagles to a 33-24 mark.
“I am so blessed and excited to accept this job here at Piedmont High School. My wife and I have raised our four daughters within 15 minutes of Piedmont, for all but two years of their life. The hometown feel, the people of this community, and the up-and-coming young ladies who are dedicated to Piedmont basketball, makes this job one of the best in the state,” Crawford told The Piedmont-Surrey Gazette. “We have a strong, talented group of very young ladies coming back, and we have great numbers and talented young players in our junior high getting ready. The future is bright, and I can’t wait for October. If you haven’t been in our new Wildcat Athletic Center (WAC), please make plans to come out and watch an exciting group of Lady Wildcats.”
Crawford was an assistant on Piedmont’s 2019 state championship team that included two of his four daughters, Delanie and Regan Crawford. Another of Crawford’s daughters, Jillian, was the leading scorer on this year’s Lady Wildcat team, and his youngest daughter, Kenley, will be a freshman at PHS next fall.
In addition to his role with the women’s basketball team, Coach Crawford also serves as the head coach of the men’s and women’s golf programs and teaches Outdoor Lifestyles at Piedmont Intermediate.
Crawford began his coaching career at Summit Middle School in Edmond in 1992, where he coached basketball, football and baseball. He later went on to coach basketball and football at Edmond Santa Fe High School.
