Dave Porter has resigned after coaching basketball at Lafayette for 23 
years.

“I’m 61 years old and I’ve had this horrendous love affair with the 
game and this beautiful lady I married and my three kids have 
supported my addiction without reservation,” Porter said. “… I go at 
it as hard as I can and it’s really a year-round job. I’m so proud of 
the fact that I’ve spent 23 glorious years at Lafayette and 39 years 
in the game but I think it’s time to step back.”

At the team’s end-of-the-season banquet last month, Porter told his 
team he would be back for one more season before retiring.

“It’s not an easy thing,” Porter said. “There’s never a right time. 
I’ve struggled with it.”

Porter has been coaching for 39 years, including stints at Sedalia 
Smith Cotton and Poplar Bluff before going to Lafayette. He has won 
595 games, 10 conference championships, 11 district championships, 
made two final four appearances and been named the Suburban West Coach 
of the Year eight times.

“It’s the right thing to do,” Porter said. “I am blessed to have 
loaded up a Grand Canyon full of memories and I still have enough mind 
to enjoy all of them.”

Porter and his wife, Patty, have three children. Daughter Jennifer was 
approved by the school board this week to become Lafayette’s girls 
basketball coach. Daughter Ashley was recently named the cheerleader 
coach at Marquette High School. Son Scott is a student at Fontbonne 
University and the lead singer for the Scott Porter Band.

“I am a roadie,” Porter said. “I’m still able to pick up amplifiers 
and stuff like that.”

Among Porter’s former basketball players are Philadelphia Phillies 
first baseman Ryan Howard, University of Missouri guard Matt Lawrence 
and Illinois State guard Landon Shipley. Lafayette senior Tony Meier 
will continue his career at Wisconsin-Milwaukee next year. Junior 
Tyler Griffey has already committed to continue his career at Illinois.

Lafayette athletics director Steve Berry said Porter struggled with 
the decision.

“We have had some discussions over the past few days,” Berry said. “I 
think it’s something Dave has wrestled with over the past month and 
throughout the school year. He just got back from a trip with his wife 
and I think that put an exclamation point on it for him.”

Berry will begin the search for Porter’s replacement next week.

“We will open it up,” Berry said. “We will be limited. Here we are in 
May and we have one teaching position open and available at this time. 
We will be limited to who we can bring in.”

One of the leading candidates will be Lafayette assistant coach Scott 
Allen, who has been Porter’s top assistant for the last four seasons. 
Porter wants Allen to get the job.

Lafayette, which went 18-9 this year and tied for the Suburban West 
Conference championship, should be one of the better teams in the area 
next season, led by the inside duo of Griffey and Will Kirksey.