James Cordova named 3A UHSAA Coach of the Year

Intermountain Catholic

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James Cordova

SALT LAKE CITY – James Cordova, Judge Memorial Catholic High School head football coach, was named the Deseret News UHSAA 3A Coach of the Year following the Bulldog’s 2013 UHSAA state football championship at Weber State University in November.

Cordova is in his 11th year of coaching the Bulldogs, who hadn’t had a state football title for 30 years. The 2013 state title for Judge Memorial was a family affair of sorts for Cordova. His brother, Anthony Cordova, was the quarterback for the last Judge Memorial state football championship team, in 1983.

Also, James and his father, Gilbert Cordova, are the only father-son pair in Utah to win state football titles at the same school, with the school being both of their alma maters.

James Cordova graduated from Judge Memorial in 1988; Gilbert Cordova led the Judge Memorial to state football titles in 1970, 1972 and 1973.

"Winning the championship this year was one of the happiest days of my father’s life," said Cordova. "It was a family affair. My brother and I are close, and my father-in-law was my offensive coordinator and he retired and was able to end his career on a high note."

James Cordova created and led a great coaching staff, said Brett Allen, Judge Memorial athletic director. "Luther Ellis helped lead the offensive and defensive line; Ray Groth was the offensive coordinator, who did a fantastic job coordinating the boys; and James is a huge motivator for the boys. Any boy who plays for James would move a mountain for him; he motivates the boys to play to the best of their ability and sometimes even beyond."

The 2013 championship was "something special and a wonderful experience," Cordova said. "I’ve never been able to walk away from the last game happy. Consoling the kids after their last football game is a difficult thing to do."

Cordova started playing little league football in junior high for Judge Memorial. "Most of my football career has been played as a Bulldog," he said.

Cordova graduated from Humboldt State University in California, where he played and also coached for a while. He returned to coach at Judge Memorial in 1994, moved away, and then came back in 2003 to become the head football coach.

Cordova’s father was a "huge influence" on his football career, he said. "My brother and I spent the summers with my dad going to the field at Judge or East High School, running and doing football drills," he said. "We did that three or four days a week and in those days they didn’t have all the programs they have for kids in sports like they do today. There weren’t trainers designed to help kids, so my father provided some specialized training. My father would coach us and teach us drills and he really set a great foundation for us."

Gilbert Cordova encouraged his sons to be the best people they could be even more than the best football player, and to believe in themselves, and "that is my philosophy today," Cordova said. "That’s not just a great football philosophy, it’s a great philosophy for life. This team was successful for who they are and what they invested. When they were freshmen, the freshman football team only won two games. Through hard work and dedication, they were able to turn a two-win team into a state championship team."