He helped Wills keep Cougars in contender’s status
By CHRIS HOBBS
HobbsDailyReport.com
TAYLORSVILLE — Alexander Central High has turned its varsity boys’ basketball program over to a key assistant who helped Ed Wills guided many of the Cougars’ best teams of the last half-century.
Cam Gant is Alexander Central High’s new varsity boys’ basketball head coach./ALEXANDER CENTRAL HIGH PHOTO
Cam Gant, head junior varsity boys’ coach and on the varsity bench with Ed Wills for eight seasons, has been named to replace Wills, who coached the varsity Cougars for 19 years.
Wills resigned in March after Alexander Central went 18-8, including 7-3 and a second-place finish behind Freedom in the Northwestern 3A-4A last season.
Willis guided his teams in Taylorsville to a record of 292-202 and to the state playoffs 14 times. The Cougars won two league titles (2015-2016 and 2021-2022) and shared a 2011-2012 crown with Freedom.
Alexander Central’s fifth head coach since the late 1970s, Wills replaced Jim Boone as the boss after the 2003-2004 season.
Fourteen of Wills’ 19 teams had winning records and so did eight of his last nine.
In the last 51 basketball seasons, Alexander Central has had 25 winning records and five of those won 20 more more — two years ago, the Cougars went 23-5 and Wills coached four others. The other 20-game winner was 20-9 under Dale Yount in 1994-1995.
ALEXANDER CENTRAL’S PRESS RELEASE
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ander County Board of Education approved the hire of Cam Gantas Alexander Central High’s next varsity boys’ basketball head coach.Gant replaces Ed Wills, who announced in March he was stepping down after 19 seasons guiding the Cougars.“I would like to thank ACHS Principal Jacob Lail and ACHS Athletic Director Nathan Robinson for allowing me the opportunity to lead the Men’s Basketball program here at Alexander Central.“I am grateful for this opportunity and will work tirelessly to continue our success on and off the floor.“I also want to express my sincere thanks to my mentor and former Head Coach Ed Wills, I can’t thank him enough for his guidance over the past several years as I learned how to coach from him.“I look forward to the challenge of keeping our program at the level it has been over the past 19 seasons under the direction of Coach Wills.”A 2012 graduate of Alexander Central, Gant played two years of varsity boys’ basketball before continuing his playing career at Guilford College. His coaching experience includes serving as ACHS junior varsity basketball head coach and a varsity assistant for eight years.Gant has also worked as head varsity boys’ tennis coach for two seasons and one season each as an assistant in football and track and field.Gant and his wife, Haley, have one child, son Beckham (3). Gant came to ACHS to teach physical education in the 2016-2017 school year.Robinson said: “I am excited with the hiring of Cam Gant… his passion for thegame is second to none and I feel that he will do a great job of leading our young men.“Coach Gant played under Coach Ed Wills while also coaching under him for several years, so he has seen what it t akes to win and direct a successful and disciplined program.”
