With the winter sports season barely a month in the books the coaching carousel is slowing down as both Tahoma and Kentwood have hired new boys basketball coaches.

Tahoma hired Brian Davis while Kentwood promoted Blake Solomon.

Davis will replace his former Kent-Meridian teammate and coaching colleague Rob Morrow who resigned from his duties with the school district in mid-February.

After graduating from Kent-Meridian in 1998, Davis spent time in the Navy and worked in the real estate business, but at the age of 26 he realized that wasn’t what he wanted to do with his life.

“I wanted to be an educator,” he said.

So, in 2006 he enrolled at Western Washington University, and in 2010 he graduated ready to get into the classroom.

One of the reasons he left Kentwood was his desire to land a teaching job. Working in the building he will teach in is an added bonus.

“It was very relieving for Nikki, my wife, and I to be told I have a teaching job next year,” Davis said. “I know how competitive the market is and how fortunate I am to get a teaching job. It’s really exciting for me because that’s what I want to do, I want to be a teacher, I know I can do it. Being in the building where I am coaching is the way it’s supposed to be.”

And as soon as he was offered the job in late March, Davis got on the phone, making calls to set up summer playing opportunities for his new team as well as getting to work on the annual tournament Tahoma hosts and setting up a kids camp.

“I didn’t take a break,” he said. “There’s a lot to be done.”

Plus, he needs to find assistant coaches, so anyone who is interested is encouraged to go check out the open positions on the Tahoma School District website, www.tahomasd.us.

As he prepares to start his new gig, Davis couldn’t be happier with the position he is now in, teaching and coaching at Tahoma High School.

“It’s a good job because the district and the high school and the people that work there are really highly regarded,” he said. “I’ve really felt comfortable immediately when working with the administration and it’s really impressive to see that. I feel very fortunate. I’m glad I was able to show them I can do great things in a classroom because that’s where I want to be.”

Being a graduate of a South Puget Sound League School and having spent the past two seasons coaching a North division team, Davis said, he has a unique perspective on the position he’s taking at Tahoma.

“You’re in a great league,” he said. “The opportunity to play against great competition is important for me and the opportunity to be successful.”

Tahoma will lose two seniors to graduation so Davis is optimistic at this phase about what he will have on the court in the winter.

“Some could argue we probably have more varsity experience coming back than other teams in the league,” Davis said. “We have a great opportunity to make lots of memories. That’s what we try to talk about, it’s a great opportunity to make memories and have fun with your friends.”

Solomon, who was by Kentwood athletic director Jo Anne Daughtry on March 31, has a similar attitude about his goal for his players.

“I’m most looking forward to building relationships with the players and making their experiences the best that I can make them,” Solomon said. “It’s my job as the head coach to put them in positions where they can create memories for a life time.”

Solomon, who graduated in 2005 from Kentwood, knows something about what it’s like to make memories as a Conqueror — he was a junior when the Conks won the first boys basketball title in school history in 2004.

During the 4A state tournament in March 2004, Solomon was a key piece in the Conquerors championship puzzle, as he hit crucial three pointers in each contest. In the state title game Solomon was one of four players who scored in double figures for Kentwood against South Kitsap.

“I think one of the reasons why this is such a good fit for the school, the players and myself being apart of those teams, I sat in the same desks they sit in right now, I played in the same gym,” he said. “Whatever they’re going through, I can relate to them, whether it’s the joy of winning the big game or losing the big game or getting an A in school. Where all these young men are trying to get both academically and athletically, I’ve done that and I can help them with that.”

He is also working at Kentwood, serving as a paraeductor, though he has a teaching degree and is certified to instruct health and physical education classes. Solomon has worked as a substitute teacher and would like to get a teaching job in the future.

Promoting Solomon to the head coaching position seemed like a natural fit for the Kentwood administration.

“Blake is extremely qualified and ready for this position,” Daughtry said in a statement. “He has a passion for the game and understands the traditions that sets Kentwood athletics apart.”

Solomon, who played at Big Bend Community College and Northwestern College, was the freshman boys coach in 2010 and the junior varsity coach in 20ll for the Conquerors.

“I’ve been saying when this opportunity opened up it’s the experience of a lifetime,” Solomon said. “I’m really honored and humbled that they would allow me to take over this position. I know exactly the culture, I know what the expectations are. I’m going to enjoy every minute of it.”

Kentwood seems to be a pinnacle of athletic success and Solomon attributes that to the culture of the school. Conqueror student-athletes know it’s a different experience.

“I think the reason we are so successful is because it is a culture of expectations,” Solomon said. “All the way from Doug Hostetter to Jo Anne Daughtry to the faculty to the students, there’s just something different about Kentwood. Kids know that we have to perform in the classroom but when we step onto the field, Kentwood has a certain aura about it, these athletes expect greatness and that goes back to the people who laid that foundation. All these sports, the kids take pride in what they do and I think that’s why we reach the level of success that we do. It’s a one-of-a-kind tradition that we have.”

And it’s a tradition Solomon hopes to continue as the head boys basketball coach.

“I’ve had two very successful seasons and these kids have picked up on that,” he said. “It helps because it’s going to be a seamless transition. We’re going to run a different program than the past two seasons in terms of Xs and Os but they know what I’m all about. It will be easier for the players when they come to work every day.”

Heading into next season Solomon will need to replace six of the top seven scorers from a team that won the SPSL North and league titles.

There will likely be some question marks, he said.

“But we’ve got some great seniors coming back and we’ve got a great talent pool of underclassmen,” Solomon said. “Other programs, they may be rebuilding, but we’re going to reload. We’re going to compete and we’re going to exceed expectations, whatever those are for us, and we’re going to come to practice and get better. We’re going to fight for everything.”