Sanger High brings back former coach while another school promotes a Fresno State alum
Matt Logue is headed back to where it all started.
After spending six seasons as the Selma High football coach, Logue is going back to Sanger High to serve in the same capacity.
“I wish I can start tomorrow,” Logue said. “I gotta finish out my contract in Selma, but the community is amazing. Everyone who ever coached there or played against Sanger knows you’re coming into a hostile environment. It’s known to be a football town. It’s one of the best places to ever play a football game. I can’t wait to get to work and get this thing rolling. I’m ready to get on the field.”
Logue served as the Apaches’ defensive coordinator for eight seasons before he was hired at Selma in 2015.
In seven seasons, he led the Bears to Central Section Division IV championships in 2016 and in 2019 and finished with a 48-24 record, according to section historian Bob Barnett.
The position at Sanger opened after Jorge Pena retired following the 2021 season. Logue said he wasn’t looking to leave Selma, but “it made all the sense in the world.”
“I had a really good gig over there,” Logue said. “I took a ton that I learned in Sanger and kind of made it my own over there, and we had a ton of success with the two section championships that we won. Great group of kids who won a lot of games and just completely bought into everything that I’ve asked them to do.
“I can’t tell you how many guys from my teams over there already texted me and congratulated me and that they’re not upset. They think it’s a good move for me. It means a lot that they’re so supportive and just understanding what they gave me and what I gave them. It’s just the right time for me to make the move to be back here in Sanger.”
Before arriving in Selma, Logue said he thought about applying for the Sanger job when Chuck Shidan retired. He also knew Pena was next in line.
Pena led Sanger to a County/Metro Athletic Conference title in spring 2021.
Logue said it was his wife who always felt someday he would return.
“I didn’t think it was going to happen,” said Logue, who played at Sacramento State from 2002-2005 after prepping at Bear River High in Grass Valley. “Seeing Jorge announce his retirement, and things kind of happened, it made all the sense in the world.”
Dwayne Wright to lead Roosevelt
Roosevelt hired former Fresno State standout running back Dwayne Wright to be its next head coach.
“I had to start from the ground up in coaching, which is fine because I was used to that,” Wright said Saturday. “I’ve always been used to working from the bottom up; my whole grind at Fresno State (was) to outwork everybody and to earn everything that God gives me and that’s how I feel about this opportunity.”
Wright had served as an assistant under Vince Branstetter, who stepped away after three seasons.
“Coach Wright has a high level of energy and drive, and a strong ethical fiber that aligns with our vision for the program,” Principal Michael Allen wrote in a statement. “He will be the kind of leader and mentor that will help our student athletes thrive. We are excited for a new chapter of Rough Rider football under Coach Wright.”
Wright played in the 15 NFL games for the Buffalo Bills in 2007. He also was in camp with the New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles and Pittsburgh Steelers.
He signed a two-year contract with the Eagles in 2010 before the team waived him prior to the season. Wright played for the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League in 2011, scoring a touchdown.
Wright is on staff at Roosevelt as a paraeducator, supporting highest-needs students, and is a minister at Amazing Grace Ministries and often speaks to youth groups to motivate and inspire.
“I think it’s huge for this community and east Fresno,” Wright said of his newest opportunity at Roosevelt. “I’ve been in this community for four years now and I’ve been at Roosevelt mentoring the youth and also mentoring the student-athletes on campus. It fits right in.”
Iowa lands SJM standout
San Joaquin Memorial wide receiver/defensive back T.J. Hall is headed to Iowa after he signed on Wednesday.
Hall originally committed to Washington.
He had many offers, but ultimately chose the Hawkeyes and will play defensive back
“We stuck with him,” Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz told reporters. “We happened to have a connection to T.J. His dad played for Don Patterson, who knows an awful lot about the Iowa football program. His dad played for him at Western Illinois. So we had a little bit of a connection there, a little tie-in,and that worked out really well.”
Others who signed last week included: Clovis safety Carlos Mack with Oregon State and teammate Nate Johnson, a quarterback, with Utah.
This story was originally published December 19, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
