Just weeks after he and his Mustangs competed in a playoff game with an unspeakable tragedy weighing heavily on their minds and hearts, football coach and athletic director Ralph Mason has announced his retirement.
The 65-year-old Mason roamed the sidelines at Andrews for a decade, compiling a 84-38 record, according to MRT.com.
“I pretty much had made that decision actually a few months back," Mason told the Midland Reporter-Telegram. "I have been thinking about it the last two or three years. The kids just keep bringing me back and I told my juniors today, I told them that I was really kind of planning finishing out with them. But then I told them, that’s what I have been doing every year, every year, I come back and wanting to keep going with the next group. I just felt like it was time."
According to Mason, his retirement will be effective June 30, 2022. He has notified the superintendent, coaches and players of his decision. With heavy hearts, the Andrews football team on Nov. 22 took the field to face Springtown for the right to advance to the regional semifinals, more than 48 hours after a bus crash claimed the lives of Andrews band director Darin Johns and bus driver Marc Boswell. The Mustangs may have lost 43-33, but what mattered the most to them was the love and support shown following the tragedy.
For the Mustangs, it didn't matter that their season came to an end. The outcome was secondary to outpouring of love and support their school has received, especially from Springtown and their nearby rivals Sweetwater and Big Spring. The Midland Reporter-Telegram opined that Mason could be best remembered for showing leadership following the bus crash and rallying the community.
Prior to the crash, the team had started its season with three losses, but then rebounded to earn a playoff spot, according to a report from the Midland Reporter-Telegram. The Mustangs had double digit leads in both the first and second halves before eventually falling in their playoff game, the Odessa American reported.