HS Boys Basketball: Clifton McNeely Retires Following 20-Year Tenure at College Park

THE WOODLANDS, TX -- College Park’s Clifton McNeely has retired as the Head Boys Basketball Coach of the College Park Cavaliers after a deep playoff run and a 20-year tenure.

McNeely served as the program’s only head coach since the school’s opening in 2005, building a legacy of boys basketball excellence that has become synonymous with College Park itself.

The Cavalier program under McNeely’s leadership has received multiple waves of Division-One talent. Notable amongst the sea of talent was prodigy and future NBA talent, Quentin Grimes. Stops at the University of Kansas and the University of Houston were key indicators of the caliber of player Grimes had become, due in part to the expert coaching from McNeely.

Now, the next generation of athletes has similarly taken strides into the next level, with Ian Inman and Aiden Buckmon starting their collegiate careers following a historic run for the Cavalier program.

A plunge into the State Final Four of the UIL Tournament saw the furthest run by a Conroe I.S.D. boys basketball program in over 40 years. While the push for a state title came up just short, the history made is another feather in the cap of McNeely’s impressive list of accomplishments.

But McNeely has decided that now was the time to step away from the sport that he has given so much to over the last 40 years.

In an interview with The Woodlands Online Sports, McNeely explained the reasoning behind his retirement and what he plans to focus on in the upcoming years.

“Family. I have been a head coach for 30 years and in coaching for 40 years. I need more time with my kids and their families,” explained McNeely. “I want to be present for my grandkids. Plus, it was time for a new face to lead [College Park] to the next step of winning a state championship.”

The Cavaliers came within one game of stepping into the 2025 State Championship on the heels of a historic run that saw College Park weave through some of the toughest 6A competition in the state before unfortunately falling to Denton Guyer.

While stepping away from the program, McNeely expressed an unmatched level of gratitude for the many people that he has impacted and the people who have helped shape College Park into what it is today.

“I will be forever grateful to all my players, assistant coaches, parents, faculty, and staff for allowing me to take this amazing journey,” said McNeely. “I am most thankful for my wife of 39 years for the love, support, and being present for our two children when I could not be.”

Even dating back to when he was first hired, McNeely still showed admiration for the people who put him in this position.

“I will always be a Cavalier and thankful to Dr. Murrell and Richard Carson for hiring me 20 years ago and allowing me to live this dream.”

McNeely did express that the opportunity to stay in education does intrigue him. The lifelong teacher simply seems driven to continue educating future generations.

“I am retiring from coaching but not necessarily from education,” explained McNeely. “I would like to stay in education if the right opportunity presents itself.”

But with the step away from coaching, the dream of a two-decade span of unparalleled success in building a state-recognized program has finally come to an end.

The immeasurable impact left by Coach Clifton McNeely on the Cavalier basketball program, athletics, and school as a whole will never be forgotten.

Congratulations to Coach McNeely on a legendary coaching career!