Gouge to lead Tri-Cities Christian girls basketball program

Much like the lavish campus being developed at Tri-Cities Crossing, Thomas Gouge intends to build something special with the girls basketball program at Tri-Cities Christian Academy. Gouge was named the new coach on Thursday, succeeding Jordan Stout. Gouge, the leading scorer on Bobby Snyder's only state tournament team at Daniel Boone in 1999, took the David Crockett girls program to unprecedented heights during his five seasons (2020-25). Gouge stepped down after guiding Crockett to its first region championship last year due to a health scare. Now, with a clean bill of health, he's eager to get back in the gym. Gouge's mother Carolyn was also in poor health at the time of his resignation, and died on Jan. 1. Gouge is an only child and a "momma's boy." The last 12 months, he's convinced, happened the way they did for a reason. "I've had a rough year," Gouge said. "Looking back, with my health and my family situation, I know I made the right decision (to resign at Crockett) and God was with me. I needed the year off to get healthy and be with my family and help with my mom. I think the timing was right, and I think the timing is right now for me to get back into it. I've missed it." Gouge went 121-32 at Crockett, a program that hadn't produced a winning record in 17 years before his arrival. Gouge's Pioneers won four conference titles, four Hardee's Classic championships, two district titles and one region championship. He was named the Johnson City Press/Kingsport Times News coach of the year three times and won three conference coach of the year awards. "We're extremely committed to athletics — new facilities, tough-minded coaches and enrollment is going up," Tri-Cities athletic director Robbie Norris said. "We have to make sure we keep a Christ-centered culture. Everything we do, we look at it spiritually, academically and athletically to be excellent." Tri-Cities Christian will join the TSSAA this coming school year. It will be in a conference that includes perennial power CAK, Grace Christian, Providence Academy and The King's Academy. "I am truly honored and grateful for the opportunity to lead the girls basketball program at Tri-Cities Christian Academy," Gouge said. "I'm excited to get to work with these young women, not just teaching the game of basketball, but helping them grow in character, discipline and faith. My goal is to build something special – on and off the court — where we compete at the highest level, support each other and keep God at the center of everything we do." Gouge is uncertain what players he will or won't inherit. At any rate, the mission will include attracting players similarly to how Tyrone "Mugs" Smith has done with TCA's boys program. "Mugs has done a great job with the boys program," Gouge said. "It's been very successful over the last few years. He's shown it's possible to create a winning culture at Tri-Cities. I'm going to lean on him throughout the process of learning the private school setting." Gouge began his high school head coaching career with a two-year stint at Happy Valley. His teams there went 33-25. Happy Valley had won four games the season prior to his arrival. Gouge was a two-time region tournament Most Valuable Player at Boone and was second team All-State as a senior. He played at Cleveland State, where he set a program record for 3-pointers. He scored 1,000-plus points at Cleveland State and made 234 treys in two seasons. A knee injury shortened his college career, but he'll feel like he's on a college campus when TCA opens next year. "It's going to be a state-of-the-art facility, 100 million dollars-plus campus — two gyms, two weight rooms, all of the nicest facilities," Gouge said. The high school will remain at its current site — what was formerly Colonial Heights Middle School — for the 2026-27 school year. "The plan is to move to the new campus in August of '27," Gouge said. "It's exciting. I can't wait to get started and meet the players and their families."