Less than a year ago, James Huckaby was on top of the Nevada 3A baseball world.
Now, Huckaby is no longer the coach of the Fernley High baseball team. NevadaPrep.com reported that Huckaby resigned on March 29 reportedly after a confrontation with a player. Last season, Huckaby directed Fernley to its first state title in school history when the Vaqueros beat Manogue twice to win the NIAA/U.S. Bank 3A state crown.
Fernley Athletic Director Dave Hart confirmed Huckaby's resignation on Saturday. Huckaby was replaced on an interim basis by junior varsity coach Cory Sandburg.
While Hart was relunctant to say too much since it was a personnel matter, when asked why Huckaby resigned, Hart said, "It was a lengthy process that happened and he decided to resign. I'd rather not go into the details. Coach Huckaby worked his tail off with this baseball program."
Hart went on to say that Huckaby is "one of the hardest working coaches I've ever been around."
When asked if he tried to talk Huckaby out of resigning, Hart said, "I'm really not at liberty to say one way or the other."
This year, Fernley is 5-4 in Northern 3A play after dropping a doubleheader to Truckee 11-1 and 9-8 Friday at Governors Bowl in Reno.