The coaches in Corey Clements’ life had a great influence on him.

Clements resigned as Thorsby’s basketball coach after five seasons but hopes he left the same kind of impression on his players.

“Probably the most important people for me growing up were my dad and the people that coached me,” Clements said.

Clements, 34, said he decided to resign so he could spend more time with his 3-year-old daughter, Molly.

“You miss a lot,” Clements said. “The thing about basketball that’s different than football is it’s two or three nights a week, and you’ve got five teams using one gym so you might not be done with practice until late.

“There were times, when we would play on Thursday and Friday, that I would put [Molly] to bed on Wednesday and not see her again until Saturday. That gets old.”

The resignation was accepted by the Chilton County Board of Education at Tuesday’s meeting.

Clements said the decision was still difficult because of all the benefits of the position, such as meeting new people. Clements said his favorite part of the job was getting to spend time with the players and be a part of their lives, as his coaches were his life.

Clements also struggled with the decision because he has been a part of Thorsby basketball for so long. As both a player and coach, Clements has been involved with the program for 18 years.

“It makes it real hard,” he said. “You think about all the people you played with and all the kids you coached. Maybe I’m just sentimental, but it still meant a lot to me to see that maroon and white jersey.”

Clements will still be a fixture at the school, teaching and coaching golf and football.

So, there will be more opportunities for Clements to impact the lives of students like the coaches he remembers so well: Barry Barnett, Clements’ youth league baseball coach for eight years; Jerry Stephens; Marvin Green, Clements’ first high school basketball coach; current Thorsby principal Russ Bryan; and Russell Ricks, who coached Thorsby baseball and basketball during Clements’ senior seasons.

“I loved my coaches, and I hope that the kids will feel that way about me.”