Coach Walter Yates, Sr. was a TRUE pioneer in Houston ISD athletics as a player and coach for over 45 years. He played on three state championship teams at Wheatley High School graduating in 1960. He then went on to win an NAIA National Championship at Pan American College as a player, now known as the University of Texas-Rio Grand Valley (UTRGV), in 1963, graduating in 1965. Yates earned a Master’s Degree from Prairie View A&M University in 1976 in Educational Administration.
Coach Yates started his coaching career in HISD as the 9th Grade Coach at E.O Smith Junior High, under the direct mentorship of ANOTHER Kashmere legend, Coach Frankie Brazos in 1965. In 1968, He accepted the Head Boys Basketball Position at Jeff Davis High School, which at the time was still a predominantly white school. He was the very first black head coach to integrate a white school in Houston ISD. He coached at Davis from 1968-1985, winning 7 district championships during his tenure while having to compete in the same district with the then dominant Wheatley Wildcat teams of the 70’s and early 80’s, and even appeared in 3 Regional Tournaments during that time. He accepted the Boys Basketball Job at Madison High School in 1985. He coached at Madison from 1985-1996, winning 9 district titles in 11 seasons, making multiple State Playoff and Regional Tournament appearances along the way. In 1996, Coach Yates arrived at Kashmere High School where he continued his winning ways by keeping the Rams relevant in the playoff picture each year, winning the district title in 1999, 2000 (co-champions), and 2003, and making the playoffs in 1998, 2005, 2006 and 2007. The 1999 and 2003 teams both advanced to the Regional Tournament round in the playoffs. Coach Yates retired from Kashmere in 2007 after a 44-year coaching stint in HISD. He left the game being in the top 3 in the state of Texas in wins and winning percentage with an overall record of 997 wins and 332 losses.
Coach Yates was a deacon at Yale Street Baptist Church for more than 30 years, and a devout family man and mentor to many. He passed away on January 2, 2019 leaving his loving wife of 55 years, Mary, along with children Alisa, adopted son, Calvin, and Walter Jr, who coached alongside his dad at Kashmere as his assistant coach from 1997-2000. He was one of BEST to ever do it!
