C.E. King head football coach Cory Laxen is the Chronicle’s Coach of the Year.
Jason Fochtman/Staff photographer
Cory Laxen is a “Houston guy,” through and through.
Growing up on the east side of the city and attending Galena Park High School shaped his perspective on life, the game of football and his latest endeavor — coaching.
So when Laxen was appointed as the head football coach at C.E. King, he could relate to the kids walking the hallways of the high school located just a stone’s throw from his old stomping grounds.
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“I think everything happens for a reason, and given this opportunity, I knew I had to take full advantage of it,” Laxen said. “I mean, I’m from the east side already. I kind of know where these kids stay. I know what they go through. I’ve been through what they’ve been through. We all speak the same language. They know who I am. I’ve been a Houston guy forever. So for me to be able to come back to the east side and be a head coach and lead these kids and coaches, it’s just a blessing.”
Laxen has been the Panthers’ head coach for a year and five months. During that relatively short span of time, he and his staff and players have completely reset the expectations for the program. C.E. King finished its season at 5-5 in 2024, missing the playoffs for the first time in seven years.
The following January, Laxen took over and shifted the culture.
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During his first season at the helm in 2025, the Panthers tied North Shore and Summer Creek for first place in the District 23-6A standings finished their historic campaign with a 13-3 record. C.E. King made its first appearance at state, falling to DeSoto in the Class 6A Division II title game.
Laxen was selected as one of 12 finalists for the Chronicle’s inaugural Coach of the Year award for his efforts and received the most votes from readers over a two-week period to claim the honor.
“I think the kids saw the results of what it looks like to not have leaders,” Laxen said. “So the motivation that whole offseason was to be able to create leadership, to create confidence and just have fun playing the game of football. I think by doing that, they’ve seen how good they could be.”
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Laxen is a Houston guy. But he’s also been a North Shore guy. He spent 10 years with one of the state’s perennial powers, winning four state championships (2015, 2018, 2019, 2021) as the offensive line coach and strength and conditioning coordinator. As a former offensive lineman himself — who played collegiately at Rice — Laxen brings a palpable toughness to his coaching.
When he took over at C.E. King, he knew a shift in mindset was necessary for success. He understood what was required to make a run at a state championship in the state of Texas.
“I’ve always said, if you can get kids to run through a brick wall for you, they’re going to give you everything they’ve got,” Laxen said. “I think that was the thing this past season — just getting those kids to really buy into the coaches and to also understand that we’ve got to coach harder. We’ve got to coach better. What we did wasn’t good enough. It’s not just the kids. It’s about the coaches, too.”
While Laxen is certainly proud of what his program accomplished in 2025, he flipped the page several months ago. Getting the Panthers ready for August has been his primary focus, and based on what he’s seen through spring ball and summer workouts, he believes his players are locked in.
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C.E. King won’t be surprising anyone this season. An early tease of the Class 6A preseason state rankings from Dave Campbell’s reveled that the Panthers are slotted at No. 3. With the amount of talent returning to the fold and the newfound momentum of the program in general, it’s a ranking that’s easy to justify. But rankings don’t hold any weight on the football field. C.E. King has its work cut out in District 17-6A, clashing with Class 6A Division I state champion North Shore and a couple of other teams — Atascocita and Summer Creek — that are always making deep playoff runs.
“This team here hasn’t won any games.,” Laxen said. “So we can’t walk around here like we’ve achieved anything because we haven’t. I think I’m more excited to find out what identity we’re going to take on. I could kind of assume what we’re going to be, but we’ve got different players, and there’s going to be new leadership. So who are we when adversity strikes? Who are we when we’re winning? We’re going to find out quickly as we prepare for the toughest district in the state.”