Throw another hat into the ring for the vacant Mingo Central basketball coaching position.

Stan Elkins, who is currently one of the assistants to Garland “Rabbit” Thompson at Tug Valley, was a last minute applicant.

The first interviews were held late last week by administrators at the school.

Elkins served as an assistant to Curt Fletcher at Williamson High School before the consolidation gobbled up four of the county’s high schools to make up the new consolidated school located on the hill above Red Jacket.

My sources say that an announcement will be made soon on the boys’ basketball coaching position.

The job came open when Frankie Smith resigned after the school year had started to take a similar position at Sheldon Clark High School in Martin County.

Although the names of the applicants are not made public, the Williamson Daily News confirmed the names of some of the applicants by contacting those individuals. There were rumors that others would apply, but apparently the list was about five or six names.

Elkins is the cousin of Marshall assistant coach Mark Cline and played basketball at Williamson High back in the mid-1970s. His late father Jack Elkins coached at Matewan High School many years ago and his mother Vivian Elkins was the girls’ coach at WHS in the 1970s and early 1980s.

My sources also tell me that Elkins has the support of some MCHS boosters, while other boosters are supporting Brad Napier of Logan County.

It will be a tough decision for the Mingo Central administration. Hopefully whomever they decide on will be able to hit the ground running. Practice starts in early November.

Optimistically – the person who gets the job will try to build the young program and provide some stability at the school. This would be the third head coach in less than two seasons for the Miner basketball program.

Prep Spotlight …

Trinity Carr rushed for 159 yards and a touchdown in Belfry’s win over Lawrence County. Carr also kicks the extra points for the Pirates. He has scored 75 points in eight games this season, which includes his TDs and extra points.

… Mingo Central lost to a tough Wheeling Central team, but junior Alex Lee had another good all-around game. He also had the longest play from scrimmage, 40 yards, for the Miners. He also had several all-purpose yards from kickoff returns, catches and runs. He also made some good defensive plays and had a punt for 65 yards.

… Tug Valley’s David Runyon and Justin Baisden had good performances in their team’s win over Van. Runyon had 13 carries for 93 yards and a TD and also an interception on defense. Baisden had 18 carries for 78 yards and a pair of scores.

Short stuff …

Mitchell Bobbera recently got a hat trick in a soccer match for Mingo Central. Austin Banks had pulled off the feat earlier in the season. Banks younger brother also got a hat trick for Williamson Middle School. Soccer is on the upswing in Mingo County. The middle schools now have soccer teams, which will help with the two high school programs. Mingo Central has both a boys and girls team, while Tug Valley hopes to start a program in the future. Mingo Central played in tournament play at Bluefield this week.

…Belfry Middle School’s football team is undefeated at 13-0 and is now in the playoffs for a state championship. The Pirates won the Pike County title. There are several good players on the squad that will play at Belfry High School in future seasons.

(Kyle Lovern is the sports editor for the Williamson Daily News. Comments or story ideas can be sent to klovern@williamsondailynews.com)