Palmer to lead Mesa hoops

The call came out of nowhere from Costa Mesa High Coach Jeff McDaniel to Boys’ Athletic Director Tim Postiff.

McDaniel mentioned rebuilding, but Postiff said it had nothing to do with the boys’ basketball program. Just homes in Mexico, where McDaniel, along with his church, planned to restore many.

Before leaving in August, McDaniel phoned in his resignation, shocking Postiff, who thought he had an on-campus teacher who planned to stay for awhile. Just one promising year, one year removed from getting his first head coaching job at 25.

Young coaches tend to move around a lot. But Postiff learned McDaniel, after guiding the Mustangs to a 17-11 record and the playoffs, wanted to travel without basketball and get more involved with his church.

The coach McDaniel replaced, Ryan Schachter, now at Corona del Mar, said he didn’t envy Postiff’s position, stuck without a coach with the winter season fast approaching.

In a hurry Costa Mesa moved on, announcing Thursday that Kevin Palmer is the new coach. Postiff met Palmer, a longtime girls’ basketball coach, on the football field, with Palmer assisting the Mustangs’ program.

“I’m good friends with Jeremy Osso [Costa Mesa’s football coach] and he told me about the opening, and since I’ve coached for 17 years, I was interested,” said Palmer, a walk-on coach with stints at Wilson of Hacienda Heights, Bellflower and Beckman. “Since I’m helping Osso in football, I’m going to have him coach the freshmen. We’ll be competitive.”

The search for a new coach proved difficult with the short notice. Seven applicants trying to land a job in which McDaniel did well last season, especially with Schachter leaving that summer for a better opportunity.

It worked out for Schachter, leading CdM to the CIF Southern Section Division III-A title. Postiff thought it did for Costa Mesa, too, getting McDaniel, a former role player on Concordia University’s NAIA Division I championship team in 2002-03.

“I thought we were going in the right direction,” said Postiff, who before McDaniel saw the Mustangs under Schachter’s two years enjoy success, a second league title in the school’s history and the first playoff victory in 42 years. “I feel sorry for some of the kids. They’re going to have a new coach, the third coach during their time here.”

One of those players is junior point guard Miguel Molina. He’s one of four varsity returnees. Not much is back, but he was looking forward to McDaniel’s second year and helping Costa Mesa improve on the third-place finish in the Orange Coast League.

Both were in Mexico when news of McDaniel stepping down hit everyone involved with the program. But Molina didn’t hear it from McDaniel, but through teammate Andy Dawson. Like most players, Molina enjoyed McDaniel’s approach.

“He was more like a friend. You could always go up to him and he would help you,” said Molina of McDaniel, who didn’t return a call for comment. “I still see him at school because he’s a P.E. teacher. I still haven’t asked him why he resigned.

“It’s been kind of weird. My first year we win league and after the season Schachter has a meeting saying he’s leaving, and then McDaniel comes in, a young guy, and he was excited. He told us he’d be here for awhile. I hope [Palmer] stays around at least for another year.”

Postiff is optimistic that Palmer, 40, won’t leave the program quickly — even though he lives in Ontario.

At least Postiff has seen him around the football program since last season’s halfway mark. The Mustangs haven’t won much and this year they’re 0-4.

There’s at least one thing Molina said that Palmer, who as an assistant football coach helped Wilson win back-to-back Division VI titles in 1996 and 1997, has carried over to the basketball program from football.

“He’s more of a disciplinarian,” said Molina of the workouts on the track, where Palmer is getting the Mustangs conditioned for another run-and-gun offense.

DAVID CARRILLO PEÑALOZA may be reached at (714) 966-4612 or at david.carrillo@latimes.com.