New Allen High School football coach embraces his Allen roots

Video: The Texas Allen Football Experience

Terry Gambill knows what he's getting into. He said he wouldn't have left such an upbeat and established job as Midway (Waco, Texas) if he wasn't exactly sure what was ahead. 

Gambill, who was unanimously approved as the head football coach and assistant athletic director at perennial national power Allen (Texas) Monday night, told Matt Wixon of the Dallas Morning News: "To me, Allen is the best high school program in the county. I'm so excited to get to be a part of it again."

"Again," because he was an Allen assistant for nine seasons and the team's defensive coordinator when it won its first state title in 2008.

He left a season later and went 68-13 as head coach at Midway over six seasons and reached the 4A Division I state finals in 2011.

When he left Allen, the Eagles really soared, earning national acclaim thanks in part to two-time National Player of the Year Kyler Murray, who led the Eagles to back-to-back mythical national championships. 

Besides the success on the field, Allen secured probably the nation's most beautiful — and expensive — football facility, the $60-million Eagle Stadium.

We got to see and feel the "Allen Football Experience," last fall, and can certainly understand why he dropped what he was doing to take this coveted job.

Gambill takes over a program that has won 10 straight district titles and claimed 57 straight games before Westlake beat the Eagles in the semifinals of the 6A playoffs in Dec. It also snapped a streak of three straight state crowns.

He was hired for many reasons, Allen superintendent Lance Hindt told Wixon, but largely because Gambill has "that Allen DNA."

Gambill takes over for Tom Westerberg, who will be the coach and district athletic director at Barbers Hill (Mt. Belvieu, Texas). He went 147-17 in 12 seasons as head coach at Allen, where he served 29 seasons — his entire coaching career.

Some found it curious that Westerberg would leave one of the nation's top programs for a smaller one outside of Houston. Barbers Hill was 4-6 last season and has missed the playoffs three straight years.

According to the DMN, the Barbers Hill job is one of the most lucrative in the state, posted for between $100,000 and $130,000 annually.

Westerberg told Corbett Smith of the Dallas Morning News: "When you get the bar raised where you can't raise it anymore, there's a lot of stress that comes with it,. But in the same breath, there will be stress where I'm going to get up to that bar. It comes with coaching. … There were a lot of factors in it. But to just have some different scenery, have a different outlook on what I'm doing, it was a change of pace that was needed a little bit."

Though Westerberg definitely left Gambill with a program brimming in numbers — more than 1,000 players participate annually — there isn't an Eagle among the top 100 Texas recruits from the Class of 2017, according to 247Sports.

In June, the Eagles will graduate the state's top 2016 recruit, offensive tackle Gregory Little, committed to Ole Miss, No. 47 Jaylon Jones, a cornerback also going to Ole Miss, No. 65 Levi Onwuzurike, an uncommitted defensive end, and No. 114 Seth Green, a dual threat quarterback headed to Minnesota.

Without an elite talent pool from the Class of 2017, Gambill might need to rely on his system and depth to make a deep playoff run. No matter what, he can't wait to get started. 

"The transition will be much easier because I know the Allen program, tradition, what they stand for," he said.