Holland Hall (Oklahoma) football coach Tag Gross announces retirement
Another ultra-successful football coach from the Tulsa area is calling it a career.
Tag Gross, who had been the coach at Holland Hall for 24 seasons and led the Dutch to two state championships, announced his retirement during a meeting with his players on Wednesday. He will finish out the remainder of the school year.
A 1987 Holland Hall graduate, Gross returned to lead his alma mater prior to the 2000 season after having previously served as the offensive coordinator at Jenks. He led the Dutch to a 157-99-1 record and helped them in their transition to an Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association member.
Since joining the OSSAA prior to the 2016 season, Gross compiled a 76-23 record and made the playoffs every season. That included the Dutch winning the Class 3A state title in 2020, which they were able to do again the following season, spoiling Lincoln Christian's opportunity for a perfect season.
This past season, Holland Hall finished 8-4 and reached the Class 3A state quarterfinals.
With Gross' retirement, Holland Hall will be seeking just its fourth head coach in program history, dating to 1959. Holland Hall athletic director Steve Heldebrand confirmed in an interview with the Tulsa World that the process of finding a new coach is under way and will take several weeks.
Gross became the latest prominent football coach in the Tulsa area to retire this offseason.
In December, Owasso coach Bill Blankenship announced his retirement after a run in which he guided three different programs to state titles (Owasso and Tulsa Union, along with Fayetteville, Ark.). He was immediately replaced as head coach at Owasso by his former defensive coordinator, Antonio Graham.
Photo of Holland Hall coach Tag Gross by Karen Schwartz
-- Buck Ringgold | buck@scorebooklive.com | @SBLiveOK
