ROCKPORT — Rockport-Fulton will have a new coach next season and will have a familiar last name.
Eric Soza, a former star quarterback at Beeville and son of Coastal Bend head coaching veteran Chris Soza, was officially hired by unanimous vote as the Pirates next head coach during a special board meeting on Tuesday at the Live Oak Learning Center.
Eric Soza, who also played at UT-San Antonio and was an assistant coach at Beeville, will take over the Rockport-Fulton program from Jacob Bible, who resigned earlier this spring after one season. Soza is the third head coach in three seasons for the Pirates program.
Soza, 33, has been the offensive coordinator and boys track coach at Beeville for the last five seasons working alongside his father. This will be Soza’s first job as a head football coach.
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“It is a bit overwhelming right now,” Soza said after the board meeting. “It was unbelievable to see all the support that was here. To see the trust that the board of trustees … that the interview committee have in me … to see how many athletes are here, how many parents here and have smiles on their faces ready to embark on this journey with me.”
The search committee was comprised of nine members from the school district, including new superintendent Lesley Austin, and two board members, who Austin said helped with community input.
Rockport-Fulton ISD said the committee was influenced heavily by a community survey on what they wanted in a new athletic director. Austin, who began her job in early April, reiterated how important the community survey was in hiring Soza just prior to the vote by the board.
“It was huge, and what I loved about it was it gave me the opportunity to really know what the community wanted, in general for our staff,” Austin said after the meeting. “I also got to know the committee really well and I felt like that really gave us a leg up to know exactly what they wanted for an athletic director.”
There were 97 applicants, which the committee narrowed down to 10 with interviews conducted late last week. Those 10 were furthered paired down to three, which were interviewed on Monday before Soza was officially brought to the board. Who the final three candidates were was not disclosed.
“You know what, we had a lot of great candidates, and I’m going to tell you what I think separated coach Soza is his interactions with individuals,” Austin said. “Whether it was our coaches, whether it’s our student athletes, or our committee, I just knew he understood South Texas football and he understood what we were looking for not just in our survey but what we were looking for in an athletic director. He exuded that in his interviews.”
Soza said his offense will be a multiple Slot-T, and said defensive alignment will depend on the personnel in the Rockport-Fulton program. Beyond those things, though, Soza was ready to to get started in the next portion of his career, which included officially signing his contract after the ceremony. His salary was not disclosed.
“It is Rockport, it is a beautiful city, it is an unbelievable community, unbelievable support, the facilities are getting better day by day,” Soza said. “But I think the biggest thing was seeing the kids … being in the same district as Rockport-Fulton, seeing those kids compete each and every contest and I wanted to be a part of that.”
