Thirty-two years after starting, with a pair of short departures in between, Bob Young will retire from coaching at Mingus Union High School at the end of this academic year.
Young, who began at Mingus in 1986, is currently an assistant coach with the Marauders softball team. He won numerous region or section titles and one state title as the head football and baseball coach, respectively.
“A lot of little things. Over the last couple of years there’s been some things that I felt wasn’t handled very well, and it seemed like it was time for me to move on,” Young said. “You’ve been someplace 30 years and after a while it’s time to go.”
In his final season as head football coach in 2017, Young led Mingus to the Grand Canyon Region title, the program’s 20th overall, and an Arizona Interscholastic Association Conference 4A state playoff appearance. In his final year at the helm of the baseball team, also in 2017, the team tied for the region title, also resulting in a state playoff appearance. Young has also been the weight lifting coach at the school.
More than just success on the field or on the diamond, Young brought more to the school, its athletic programs and their athletes. Marauders 2011 alum Erick Quesada, now the head baseball coach, spoke about how Young’s work transcended wins and losses. Quesada played football his final two years at the school and baseball all four.
“It was stern but very fair. Coach Young, he’s a competitor, he’s still an all-around amazing man. I’ve learned a lot from him and I continued to carry that as I got older and I began to coach,” Quesada said. “It sucks for Mingus because he’s such a great guy, but Mingus is going to lose a great one, that’s for sure.
“They’re losing pretty much the heart and soul of athletics. He has been here for so long and he’s invested so much time in the kids, and I know as an alumni I speak for almost all of them, we learned so much from him, and Mingus is losing a great person, but a great coach too.”
Steve Huson, a baseball assistant coach, coached with Young at Mingus for about 20 years. Their relationship goes back even further, back to when their children began to play Little League, 27 some-odd years ago.
“Coach Young has been such a fixture around here for so many years, that for him to retire, it kind of feels like you’re losing a family member,” Huson said. “Obviously I hope he finds something he enjoys doing. There’s no one that worked any harder at the school than he did, as far as having things open for the kids and doing things for the kids. He’ll be greatly missed by the whole school, staff and by the kids for sure, that’s the most important ones.”
After leading the Marauders football team to a state title in 1997, Young went to Westwood High School in Mesa. He returned in 2000, and save a one-month switch to Prescott High School in 2011, Young stuck with Mingus.
He also led the baseball team to a state title in 2009. Asked about his fondest memories coaching at Mingus, Young deferred from pointing out a single game or championship title.
“It was a great time in my life, a great 30 years. My kids went through Mingus, and I had a lot of great coaches that mentored me and a lot of great coaches that worked with me, and obviously an awful lot of great kids over the years,” Young said. “It’s just been a great run, a great 30-plus years.”
While Young will no longer be running practices or calling plays at Mingus, “I think I’m a lifer for a coach, I’m going to coach till I’m dead,” he said. Currently living in Clarkdale, Young is helping with his grandson’s Little League team in Camp Verde. Bright Field, the football field, and Patterson Field, the school’s baseball field, will remain close by, and so will Young.
“I might be going somewhere back and forth, but I’ll always be a Marauder,” Young said.
