No surprise: Andy Cavalier named new Canadian head football coach

In a very expected move, Canadian ISD promoted Andy Cavalier from defensive coordinator to its next athletic director/head football coach on Wednesday morning.

The move comes just two weeks after the stunning news of longtime head coach Chris Koetting announcing his retirement after an incredible 13-year run where he leaves with 165 wins and three state championships. Koetting stated he retired after recognizing he had early-stage signs of Alzheimer’s.

“I truly wish the circumstances were different,” Cavalier said. “This is coming about from difficult situation for a good friend, and I wish things were different. But I’m humbled and honored to have this opportunity. Canadian has been a special place the last 10 years for myself and my family. I’m thankful this is where life has taken us, and I’m excited us and I’m excited for the future.”

For Koetting, Cavalier taking over the prestigious Wildcat program is a no-brainer. This is Koetting’s hand-picked choice and Cavalier is a man that Koetting has full trust in to lead the Canadian athletic program going forward.

“I’m so excited that Andy is getting this opportunity,” Koetting said. “There is a lot of things that makes him successful. He is so passionate about football and he’s extremely smart. He has an incredible work ethic, and he knows our offense as well as he does the defense. He builds great relations with the athletes, and they love to play for him. He knows what it takes to get the best out of every single kid. I think he’ll take the program to another level and make the community proud.”

Cavalier comes from great lineage as the son of the late, great, Dennis Cavalier. Dennis spent 16 seasons at Pampa compiling 107 wins. Cavalier stepped into his father’s footsteps as a coach with stops at Tascosa, Midland High and Eastland and was also a head coach at his Alma-mater, Pampa, from 2006-2008. However, the past nine seasons Cavalier has established his reputation as one of the top defensive coordinators in the state at Canadian helping lead the Wildcats to three state championships.

“I’m sure it will be a very different situation this time around as a head coach,” Cavalier said. “I was a young coach at Pampa and I just felt honored to have that job. I’ve had the opportunity to watch coach (Chris) Koetting and see how he operates. He creates success. There is no doubt I’m far better now than before.

“There has been a great legacy of success built here in Canadian. The formula is in place that has been working for quite a while. We want to strive to improve and get better. What helps me the most is that we have a great staff in place. I want to take that same approach that coach Koetting did. I want to let the coaching staff do their job and put them in the position to be successful. I hope I’m able to do that.”