Family ties pull Jordan away from Williams hoops job

In his two seasons as Williams High School boys’ basketball coach, Josh Jordan said his team had taken on the feel of a family. But when an opportunity to help his actual family came around, Jordan had to make the tough decision to leave the Bulldogs sidelines.

“It was one of the most emotional experiences I’ve ever had,” Jordan said. “It was very, very difficult. … In two years, we’ve grown very close.”

Jordan, 29, informed the team Wednesday that he was leaving the school in order to pursue a business opportunity in his hometown of Asheville.

He said he consulted with several fellow coaches before arriving at his decision to leave.

“They all agreed that this was a decision I had to act on,” Jordan said.

Jordan went 36-18 in two seasons, leading the Bulldogs to state-playoff berths each year.

The Bulldogs won the Mid-State 3-A Conference regular season crown last season. Williams was third in the league this season.

“The kids really stepped up big time this season,” Jordan said. “The kids showed a lot of class and character.”

Jordan had stints as the junior varsity coach at Williams as well as a varsity assistant position at Franklin High School prior to taking the head coaching spot at Williams.

“I had a very rewarding and satisfying experience at Williams,” Jordan said. “I was very for-tunate to have this opportunity. We did some special things here in the last two years.”