Randy Allen, one of the best high school football coaches Highland Park has ever had and one of the best coaches in Texas, announced his retirement on March 21. Shortly after, on April 10, Coach Allen announced that he had reconsidered his retirement, and will be coaching Highland Park Football next year. This decision surprised many people, but those who knew him well knew his passion for the sport. A tweet from Highland Park ISD on Tuesday announced his decision, congratulating Allen on deciding to return for his 20th year of coaching for Highland Park.

Allen has been a head coach for 37 years, and coaching for 44. He is one of the highest paid football coaches in Texas, and has won 376 games, which is the fourth highest in the state. In addition to the two state titles won with quarterback John Stephen Jones, Allen also led the scots to a state championship in 2005. With Highland Park, he has won 226 games.

Allen’s retirement was a big decision that was influenced by a group of advisors, mentors who suggested that it could be time to retire.

“My advice from some of my mentors was that this would be a great time to go out, when you’re on top,” Allen said. “I realized that going out on top wasn’t as important as being with the players, and having a positive impact on them.”

He began to have regrets about his decision, and eventually he realized that he wanted to continue coaching at Highland Park. Allen’s passion for the sport and yearning to stay on the field drove him to unretire shortly after.

“I just miss the players and the coaches,” Allen said. “That was the main thing. Highland Park is a great school and has great young people.

“I just miss that relationship. It just took me three weeks to realize how much I missed it.”

Next season, Allen’s star quarterback, John Stephen Jones, will be playing for Arkansas. This means that Allen must focus grooming another quarterback, Chandler Morris, to lead the Scots to a third state championship (in a row). Allen has been doing this for Highland Park since 1996, and it is one of his favorite parts of coaching.

“Each year, there’s a special group of seniors that have made their senior year their focus point,” Allen said. “And they want to leave this program better than they found it. I wanted to be a part of molding these young men.”