Former Howard Payne player and assistant coach Jorden Young is returning to Brownwood, following a head coaching stint at Santo, to take over a Lions program seeking its first trip to the playoffs since the 2022-23 campaign.
The Lions’ first game of the Young era is at 4:30 p.m. Friday at Benbrook.
“I took a leap of faith and made the jump from 2A to 4A because I know Brownwood is a special place to my family, and kids are kids,” Young said. “We’re excited to get things rolling. The atmosphere is hopefully changing and there’s a little buzz in the air with basketball around the corner.”
Over the last two seasons, the Lions won a combined 24 games, but dropped 17 of 18 league contests. Young is tasked with turning around the program, but will start the season short-handed as a few players still competing for the football team.
“I can’t guarantee you a win when you watch a Brownwood basketball game, but I can guarantee you that our kids will play hard,” Young said. “I can guarantee it’s going to be exciting to watch. The only way to play basketball is to play hard and give it everything you have. We’re going to play an up-tempo, exciting style of basketball. We’re going to sit down in a defensive stance. We’re going to be disciplined. We’re not going to be disrespecting the refs and the game, we’re not going to be picking up technical fouls. We’re going to play the game the way it should be. Regardless of the result, win or lose, we’re going to give everything we have. Whatever happens, happens, and we can walk off the court with our heads high and say we gave it what we could.”
Early season players to keep an eye on include returnees Elias Perez and Bennett Windham, along with varsity newcomer Cannon Calvert.
“Cannon has really come along,” Young said. “He was a JV player last year and he’s been real consistent for us over the summer and fall, a real workhorse. Elias is a returning starter from last year’s team and he’s gotten better from watching last year’s film. The dark horse is Bennett. He’s grown about 2-3 inches and added 10-15 pounds of muscle so we’re hoping to develop him this year.”
Once football ends, expected additions to the roster include Durham Brown, Judson Coalson and Carson Noe.
“Durham Brown is returning varsity player from last year, and a couple of football kids that told me they’re going to play are Judson Coalson and Carson Noe,” Young said. “Everyone knows how good of an athlete those kids are, and when you put a good athlete on the basketball court they’ll make some things happen.”
Following the opener with Benbrook, the Lions will face Lampasas, Dublin, Comanche, Llano, San Angelo Lake View, Burnet, Brady, Gatesville and Waco High, along with competing in the Dublin and Brady tournaments, as well as the TexasBank Holiday Classic, before district starts.
“I want to see us grow together as a unit, and a group,” Young said of the pre-district goals. “I talk about being one pride, all looking out for each other, not just for themselves. I want to win every game, but I also want to get these kids to grow and learn what I want out of them so when district rolls they’re playing the type of ball I want us to play.”
As for the District 6-4A race, Young said, “Brock is the front-runner, the preseason No. 15 team in the state. After that, I think the door’s open, Glen Rose graduated quite a few, Stephenville is always scrappy and returns almost every single kid, and Graham and Mineral Wells have new coaches, so a a lot of us are new. But I believe we can can put ourselves in the mix to compete with any team in the district. We’re going to give our best and compete our tails off, and whatever happens, happens.”
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2025-26 Brownwood Lions Varsity Basketball Schedule
| N14 | at Benbrook | 4:30 p.m. |
| N15 | at Lampasas | 1:30 p.m. |
| N18 | Dublin | 7:15 p.m. |
| N24 | at Comanche | 12:30 p.m. |
| N25 | at Llano | 12:30 p.m. |
| D2 | at Jim Ned | 7:30 p.m. |
| D4-6 | at Dublin tournament | TBA |
| D9 | at San Angelo Lake View | 7:15 p.m. |
| D11-13 | at Brady tournament | TBA |
| D16 | Burnet | 6:30 p.m. |
| D19 | Brady | 3:30 p.m. |
| D29-31 | TexasBank Holiday Classic | TBA |
| J2 | Gatesville | 3:30 p.m. |
| J9 | at Waco High | 7 p.m. |
| J16 | Stephenville* | 7 p.m. |
| J20 | at Graham* | 7 p.m. |
| J23 | Brock* | 7 p.m. |
| J27 | at Mineral Wells* | 7 p.m. |
| J30 | Glen Rose* | 7 p.m. |
| F3 | at Stephenville* | 7 p.m. |
| F6 | Graham* | 7 p.m. |
| F10 | at Brock* | 7 p.m. |
| F13 | Mineral Wells* | 7 p.m. |
| F17 | at Glen Rose* | 7 p.m. |
* District 6-4A Games