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| Coach Wolfe, who has ended his eighteen year tenure as head football coach at Apex. |
Features Editor & Sports Editor
Football coach Bob Wolfe has retired after 18 years on the job at
Apex. Head coach since 1994, Wolfe
accumulated a 103-99-3 record during his tenure.
“I just felt that inside of me it was time. I’ve been coaching for 38 years now,” Wolfe
said.
Wolfe was promoted to the head coaching position in 1994, after the
surprise resignation of Coach Ken Hite. Hired
as an assistant coach only a few days earlier, Wolfe was surprised by the
promotion. “I had been in business, out
of coaching,” said Wolfe. It would be
Wolfe’s first coaching position at any level in several years.
Prior to coming to Apex, Wolfe held several coaching jobs, including
head coaching positions at Kinston and Wilmington Laney.
Wolfe turned around a failing Apex football program. Leading up to 1994, the varsity squad had
suffered through twelve straight losing seasons. Starting in 1998, Wolfe’s team turned in
eleven winning seasons in a row. The run
also included two co-conference championships and nine state playoff
appearances. In 2008, the team advanced
to the third round of the playoffs, the furthest any Apex team has ever
advanced.
Over the last three years, Apex has not seen as much success. Since 2008, the team only won six games, a
steep departure from earlier in the decade.
“I knew it would take a lot of energy to get the program back to where
it was before. I felt it would be better
if someone younger with a bit more energy came in,” said Wolfe.
On the day Wolfe announced he was retiring, he said the team’s reaction
was “good about the news, but sad I had decided to do it.” Wolfe said he will miss working with the
players. “I really enjoyed that. I’ll really miss the coaches and the
players. There has been a lot of great
players and coaches that have come through these doors in my eighteen years
here.”
After retiring, Wolfe says, “I plan on spending some more time in
Virginia. I have a home in the
mountains…I’ll probably do work around the house that I’ve been putting off for
years.” Wolfe also wants to do some
travelling and attend more college games of his former players.
Wolfe said he has thoroughly enjoyed his time at Apex. “My time at Apex has been amazing. It has far exceeded my expectations,” said
Wolfe. “I didn’t expect the amount of
success or the way it happened,” said Wolfe.
“To have an impact in school community and peoples’ lives was even
better,” he continued.
Wolfe is optimistic about Apex’s future. “I hope they can continue to experience the
success that we had,” said Wolfe, continuing “not just the success on the
field, [but] the great family atmosphere and team attitude as well.”
As for new head coach Joe Kilby, Wolfe has some
advice. “Just be himself, do what he
does best,” said Wolfe, “then the success will come.”
