ALL IT TOOK WAS ONE PHONE CALL.
Athletic Director Jeff Feller reached out to Brandon Mouton just after Thanksgiving in 2019 and "the rest was history".
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"I think he heard my name around basketball circles and talked about what he was building at St. Pius X and if I was interested?" Mouton said. "He is building a winning culture and I want to be a part of it."
Mouton's name is legendary around Texas Longhorn basketball circles. He was an integral part of the 2003 Longhorn Final Four team, the only one in school history.
"It was special," Mouton said looking at his Final Four ring. "We had a collective group of young men with the same goal in mind – winning a National Championship."
The second-year head coach is trying to convey the life lessons he learned while playing at Texas to his Panther program.
"What I try and share with my guys is the sense of family it takes to be successful," he said. "A true sense of team and having each other's backs is so important. In addition, you have to put the work in every day. There are no shortcuts if you want to be great.
"I know it sounds cliché, but you also have to trust the process.
The truly great teams do it. If we do those things, we should be fine." The experiences Mouton has enjoyed in the sport of basketball run the gamut from playing a Final Four in his home state of Louisiana, to facing some of the most talented athletes in the world.
But his greatest experiences may be in front of him.
"I couldn't have gotten here without great coaches and mentors," he said. "I really feel like God has something to do with me being at St. Pius X. This is part of his plan. I'm using basketball as a tool to give back to my guys. I'm trying to instill qualities that will make them great dads and great husbands."