Cherry Creek boys tennis coach Kirk Price. (Cherry Creek boys tennis Facebook page)
Kirk Price, coach of the hugely successful Cherry Creek boys tennis program, will retire after this season.
Cherry Creek athletic director Jason Wilkins confirmed Price’s decision on Wednesday.
“I’m sure he’ll still be around and offer input, but it’s one of those things where he’s been doing it so long that eventually you’re interested in doing something else,” Wilkins said.
Price, 68, started as an assistant and has been a coach 38 seasons, 24 as head coach. His teams won 22 state titles, including the past three since 2011. Among championships his teams has won are those in Class 6A, 5A and from when the sport was unclassified.
“It’s kind of ridiculous when you sit down and really think about it,” Wilkins said. “There’s a lot of parity now. There are 50-some 5A schools, and he pulls it off almost every year.”
As a no-cut program, Price’s teams typically have 140-160 kids taking part each year. It requires a lot of commitment.
“It’s a tremendous amount of time,” Wilkins said. “He was there at 8:30 this morning and he left at 6. He’s got kids playing challenge matches all day on all these different courts. And it’s not like he’s been doing it for one or two years; he’s been doing it for nearly 40.”
Price also coached swimming at Cherry Creek for 18 seasons, winning eight state championships and finishing runner-up five times, and was a math teacher at the school for 30 years.
“I’m sure a lot of people, when they come to Creek, are like, ‘Oh my god, there he is,'” Wilkins said. “Because he’s not a small person to begin with. And he’s not quiet. He has opinions. You know, he’s a coach. He’s not some guy sitting the corner not saying anything. He has a presence about him, as well, and obviously a reputation of years and years of success.
“When you really look at his resume, you’re probably going to be really hard-pressed to find someone that compares to him on the grand scale.”
Price was inducted into the Colorado High School Coaches Association’s Hall of Fame in 2004. Seven years later, he joined the National High School Athletic Coaches Association’s Hall of Fame. In addition, he’s served on national boards and rules committees.
“He’s a legend there,” said CHSAA assistant commissioner Bethany Brookens, who oversees tennis.
Added CHSAA commissioner Paul Angelico, who administered tennis for 20 years: “The sport will miss him.”