By Marilyn Miller

There’s an old Johnny Cash song that goes, “I’ve been everywhere, man, I’ve been everywhere, man…” Most people have heard it. Matter of fact, some of you won’t be able to get it out of your heads now. Insert little smiling emoji…

Take late Coach Clyde “Buster” Carlisle during his 41 years of teaching and coaching in the public school systems in Louisiana and Texas for example. From the early sixties until 2003, Carlisle and his family tripped around to Midway Jr. High to Winnsboro to Castor, to a short stint at a Florida school, home to Belcher for three years to put his father’s farm back together, then back to coaching at Minden, LA for a decade, onto the Texas years, where Buster coached at Marshall, Huntington, Kirbyville (sitting out a year in-between to recover from a heart attack), and finally to the Clarksville Independent School District in Texas, where he coached until his retirement in 2003.

The Carlisle family has truly been everywhere. However, it was Minden and Clarksville where Buster spent over half of that 41-year career. And it was at those high schools where he found the most success, not including the number of sons and grandsons who have followed in his steps.

“His Minden High School team went to the State play-offs in 1972…then again when Reny Bailey was playing in ’79 and I think one more time,” said Debbie Brown, one of three daughters born to Buster and Frances Carlisle. Debbie and her husband, Teddy, decided to settle in Minden when Buster and Frances left for Texas. Today, Frances is back in Minden residing with the Browns.

“One writer picked up that daddy won three State titles in Minden,” Debbie added. “But he didn’t…I don’t know how that got out there, except that it probably was a misunderstanding because he coached the AAU and BBCI (Amateur Athletic Union and Basketball Congress International) teams for Louisiana during the 1980s. His team of 15 and 16-year-olds won two State titles and the National title that was played in Las Vegas.”

On May 31, 2017, Yahoo Sportswriter Les Carpenter wrote an article headlined “The amazing story of the greatest AAU team you’ve never heard of…” Among the members of that team…Karl Malone, Joe Dumars, “Hot Rod” Williams, and Benny Anders. The coach of the team was Buster Carlisle.

The greatest success that Buster achieved in high school sports was undoubtedly at Clarksville High School in the Clarksville ISD in Texas. “Coach gave 40-plus years to education and coaching, twenty in Louisiana and twenty in Texas. His teams won two state championships in Clarksville, Texas, in 1995 and 1998,” a clip in Facebook said. “At the time of his retirement in 2003, he was ranked the third winningest coach in the nation and the second winningest coach in Texas, winning (a total of) 1,103 games.”

Buster was born Sept. 5, 1933 in East Point, LA and entered into rest March 3, 2014 in Minden, LA. Earlier in January, Buster’s family was invited to Clarksville, TX, where a memorial to Coach Clyde (Buster) Carlisle has been painted onto the gymnasium floor in two opposite places.

Bruce Williams contributed a story in the Jan. 4, 2024 edition of the Paris (TX) News.

“A special event will unfold at halftime of Friday’s 6 p.m. boys basketball game between the Clarksville Blue Tigers and Liberty-Eylau Leopards in the Clarence L. Nix Jr. gym in Clarksville, as the high school gym floor will be dedicated in honor of Clyde ‘Buster’ Carlisle’s record-breaking tenure at the Red River County school,” Williams wrote. “During his tenure in Clarksville, he led the Blue Tigers to 12 district championships, and 11 regional tournament appearances, as well as five trips to the Drum in Austin for state tournament appearances.

“Carlisle guided the Tigers to a pair of state championships, in 1995 and 1998. He also led Clarksville to an 87-game district win streak.”

Eight members of the Carlisle family attended the dedication ceremony, Frances Carlisle, Debbie Brown, Lindsay Brown, John Carlisle, Randy Carlisle, Randal Carlisle, Jacob Brown, and Hudson Brown. 

“We are very appreciative of the Clarksville ISD for honoring our father, grandfather, great grandfather and husband,” Debbie Brown said. “We thank you for the halftime ceremony, and for the reception for us afterwards in my dad’s former classroom. You just don’t know how much this means for my mom and us.”

Buster Carlisle was also known as a Godly man. But Johnny Green of the Texarkana Gazette probably summed him up best when he wrote, “Simply put, Clyde “Buster” Carlisle was the best high school basketball coach I’ve ever seen. His ability to motivate his players to run his disciplined motion offense was incredible. And he was a character on the sidelines, from his sports jacket, denim jeans and boots to his steely blue eyes that stared down many an official.”