Coach Leon White is retiring after 40 years of coaching Track & Cross Country in Arkansas.
He ran High School Track for Sylvan Hills High School in Little Rock, AR. He was a State Champions hurdler and was recruited to run for Harding University. From there, he went on to run at Harding University under legendary Coach Ted Lloyd. He held the 400m hurdle freshmen record at Harding for quite some time. He was also awarded All-American honors in his time at Harding for being a part of an All -American 4x400m relay team that competed at Nationals.
After college, he took his first coaching job in Crossett, AR for the Crossett Eagles.
He coached for 22 years in Crossett. As an assistant coach from 1978-1994, he was a part of countless State Championships under legendary Coach Bobby Richardson.
In 1995, Coach White became the Head Track & Field and Cross Country coach of the Crossett Eagles. During his six years as the head coach in Crossett, he won 9 Conference Championships, 6 State Championships, and was State Runner-up a number of times.
In 2000, Coach White accepted an Assistant coaching position at Cabot High School under current UALR Head Coach Milton Williams.
Coach White became Cabot High School's Head Track & Field and Cross Country coach in the fall of 2001. In his time as the Head Coach of the Cabot Panthers, he has won 11 Conference Championships and been State Runner-Up on four separate occasions in the extremely tough 7A classification. He has also resides as the President of the Arkansas Coach's Association for the last 6 years.
All while he was coaching, Coach White has also been an active member and elder at the Cabot Church of Christ for many years. Anybody who truly knows him knows that he strives to honor God in all that he does. He has been married to Beth White for 40 years this September. The two of them have inspired so many people with their marriage and how faithful they have been to one another over last 40 years. Beth has always been by Leon's side: for all the good seasons and for all the bad. She has been such an incredible support to him over his many years of coaching. Being a coach's wife can be tough sometimes with all the late nights and long meets. But- She never complained. She has always been there being the best she could be for him and in return, he has always been the best he could be for her. They truly have written these last 40 years of their story as one unit/one team.
In addition, Coach White's kids won't hesitate to tell you how great of a father he has been throughout their entire life. In the midst of every season, he still always found the time to be at home for dinner, to be at every game, and to be at every church service. He has always been faithfully present. No matter what, he was always there for them. He was a great dad. Now, his daughter Lauren and her husband Jeremy live in Dallas. His eldest son Matthew and his wife Kelly live in Little Rock. And his youngest son Zach and his wife River live in Mount Dora, FL. As the grandkids start to total up (5 at the moment), Coach White is ready to switch his focus to being able to spend even more time with family.
We are going to miss this truly beloved coach. But, we are so thankful for all the memories he has left us with. All who know him know that Coach White is extremely quiet and humble man and he does not reach for the spotlight. However, it is clear that he has lived a life and had a career worth spotlighting for all to see. He would never say any of this about himself, but we can say it for him:
Coach White, you truly are an incredible man and a great coach!
Thank you so much for all you've done!
--EVERYONE