Northside High School's boys and girls basketball programs will be under new leadership next season, as both coaches — Jason Herbstler and Mercedes Rogers — were relieved of their coaching duties.
"It was pretty shocking when I was told on Thursday that the new administration wanted to go in a different direction for basketball," said Herbstler, who led the Vikings to a 19-15 record and a spot in the regional round of the Division II select playoffs.
James Rollins was appointed principal in June following the retirement of Perry Myles, but Herbstler said he wasn't overly concerned about his job security.
"Honestly, not really," he said. "You're always worried, but I wasn't overly worried."
In her lone season at Northside, Rogers led the Vikings to the Division II select quarterfinals.
Efforts to reach Rogers for comment were unsuccessful.
Herbstler, who served as a Northside assistant coach for six seasons under Ross Rix, was promoted to head coach in 2018. Before that, Herbstler was the freshman coach for two seasons while teaching at N.P. Moss Academy in Lafayette, where he was named Teacher of the Year in 2016.
"I care about the kids, the school and the community," Herbstler said. "It was hard having to talk to (the players) and their parents (Thursday). It was pretty hard and pretty disheartening because (the decision) caught everybody off guard."
Herbstler, who graduated from Sulphur High and played college basketball at Missouri Valley College, had a 105-97 record at Northside. The Vikings qualified for the playoffs in each of his six seasons but never past the second round.
"Obviously, I would have wanted us to advance further in the playoffs," he said. "You never want your last game of the year to be a loss."
Herbstler, who said he'll still teach at Northside, said he's going to miss coaching.
"I'm going to miss the relationships that were built," he said. "I really enjoy coaching and I do hope to continue coaching in the future. I'm still passionate about the game and I feel it is still a great way to make an impact on the future of kids. It has been a good ride for me and my family."
Rogers led the Vikings to a 13-14 record in her one season as coach. Northside earned a playoff berth that included the No. 8 seed and a first-round bye. Northside beat Frederick Douglas 63-37 in the second round, before falling to league rival and eventual state champion Lafayette Christian 60-36 in the quarterfinals.
The girls program will be returned to former head coach Amanda Clemons, who led Northside in the 2022-23 season. That year, the Vikings went 16-11 and advanced to the second round of the playoffs.