Yates to be assistant coach

Davey Yates
Davey Yates

— Davey Yates is the newest addition to the Decatur High School's coaching staff and will serve as the baseball coach, assistant football coach and as a social studies teacher.

Yates is a familiar face at Decatur High School. He graduated from Decatur in 2005 and played on the high school’s football and basketballteams. Yates grew up in the area and said his entire family - aunts, uncles and cousins - are delighted that he is coming to work inDecatur. But it is not just his flesh-and-blood family that is drawing Yates back to Decatur; it’s his larger family of community and school.

A recent graduate of Arkansas Tech University in Russelville, Yates is excited about returning to DecaturHigh School and hopes to make a difference. He is also attending Harding University to earn his master’s degree.

Yates said he hopes to be a positive model for students and serve as anexample, proving that students from Decatur can be successful. He understands the challenges the football team has faced in the past,recalling how football was canceled during his junior year in high school because of a consolidation scare, and that the team didn’t win a single game during his senior year. Yates, however, found success in other areas and was awarded a full academic scholarship to college.

“I came from here. I know the challenges these guys face,” Yates said, “I want to come back and help my family out.”

While some have left Decatur High School to play football at larger schools, Yates said he feels students and community members need to pull together to support the school instead of leaving. Yates said he wants students to understand that the past doesn’t matter.

“It's a whole new day. They can do whatever they want to do,” he said.

Sports, Pages 7 on 08/03/2011