SOUTH CHARLESTON, W.Va. — For Josh Daniel, the opportunity was simply too good to pass up.
Daniel was approved to be the boys basketball coach at South Charleston High School on Thursday night by the Kanawha County Board of Education.
A former standout in his playing days with the Black Eagles, Daniel spent the past six seasons as the boys basketball coach at Herbert Hoover High School.
“Ever since I came to back to West Virginia, getting back to South Charleston was always a dream and a goal of mine,” Daniel said. “That job has only been open a couple of times in the last thirty years or so. Obviously they’ve had a lot of success and it’s one of the premier programs in the state.
“Being able to come home to the city where I’m from and where I played is exciting.”
Daniel was adamant, however, that leaving behind the Huskies to return to his alma mater was a difficult decision.
“The people, community and administration were tremendous,” Daniel said. “Everybody’s been great and I wouldn’t trade my time there for anything. This was definitely not an easy decision, but it’s too good of an opportunity to pass up.”
A 2006 graduate of SCHS, Daniel left as the leading scorer in school history and was the Mountain State Athletic Conference Player of the Year as a senior. He went on to play at Eastern Kentucky before working as a graduate assistant for one year in separate stints at Coastal Carolina and EKU.
In 2017, Daniel helped guide Hoover to its first state tournament berth in school history and he amassed a 59-82 record in his tenure.
The Black Eagles have struggled of late, including suffering through a 7-14 campaign this season after multiple players transferred.
“They’ve had some issues with is a lot of kids leaving,” Daniel said. “You have to keep your kids at home. Your South Charleston Middle School kids and Dunbar Middle School kids have to be in the area and going to South Charleston. There aren’t a ton of kids, so if you lose one or two it’s a big deal and if you lose ten or twelve, it’s a huge deal and sets you back. It’s hard to develop and get continuity with kids leaving.”
Daniel will be replacing Vic Herbert, who stepped down last month after guiding the Black Eagles the last 10 seasons.
“One of the biggest things I’ll have to do, especially during the three-week period, is evaluate guys,” Daniel said. “I can you tell you how I’d like my team to play, but until I get to see these guys, I can’t tell you for sure how we’ll play.”