CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Students at Veterans Memorial High School now walk past a familiar smile every day.
A new memorial display in the school’s athletics hallway honors Coach Leyton Hernandez, who died in March. The display features a “Texas Slam” — a redfish, a speckled trout and a flounder — surrounding his photo, with a plaque recognizing him as a teacher, coach, mentor and friend.
The memorial was the idea of Veterans Memorial football coach Jerry Wade, who coached Hernandez when he played at King High School. The Veterans Memorial Anglers Association led the project, and local sponsors paid for the entire display.
“He wanted to be here because he truly loved this place,” said Randall Terrell, a Veterans Memorial football coach who worked alongside Hernandez from his first day on campus.
Hernandez, 28, was in his fifth year teaching and coaching at Veterans Memorial. Terrell said he still gets emotional walking past the display.
“He became a friend of mine when I wasn’t looking for a friend. That’s how powerful a person this was,” Terrell said.
For the players he coached, the memories aren’t all tears. Cooper Keel, who played for Hernandez, said his coach would have had plenty to say about his own memorial — starting with his photo.
“He’s a good looking guy. He knew it,” Keel said, laughing. He added that Hernandez would probably also complain that the fish weren’t big enough.
On Friday nights, Keel wears No. 44, the same number Hernandez once wore. The rest of the week, he passes his coach in the hallway.
“Every day when I walk past it, I look up at it, smile,” Keel said.
Terrell said one of Hernandez’s favorite lessons for his players was a story about buffalo. When a storm rolls in, cattle scatter. Buffalo do the opposite.
“The buffalo, they band together, go through the storm together, and when they come out they’re even tighter,” Terrell said.
Terrell said if he could add one thing to the display, it would be a buffalo.
The Veterans Memorial Anglers Association says the display isn’t finished, and it’s still welcoming sponsors to help add to it. The club thanked Michael Diaz, Mario Diaz and Andrew Foster for their support. Anyone interested in sponsoring can contact jfwade@ccisd.us.
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