Gig Harbor High boys basketball coach Craig Brooks has resigned his position after two seasons, the school’s athletics director confirmed Wednesday.
Brooks was placed on paid administrative leave in January after complaints by parents led to a Peninsula School District investigation. The investigation is ongoing, athletics director Bob Werner said, but Brooks didn’t wait for its conclusion, turning in his resignation.
Controversy began swirling around the program in early January after four players were suspended for undisclosed violations during a trip to Ketchikan, Alaska. The school district declined to name the players, citing student privacy laws, but the eight-game suspensions initially handed down were consistent with punishments typically given to athletes who violate drug or alcohol clauses in the district’s activities code.
Brooks took over the head coaching position in 2011 after Tom Adams’ resignation. Brooks’ two-year record was 16-27, including a 5-15 mark this season, when the Tides failed to make the playoffs for the first time since 2009.
Brooks wasn’t immediately available for comment. He teaches math at Gig Harbor High, but Werner couldn’t confirm whether he’d keep his teaching position.
Werner said the school district is accepting applications for the job until Tuesday. He hopes to conduct interviews immediately after that, and tentatively plans to announce the new coach in early April.
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