Dustin Barnett named new head basketball coach for Butler County High School

MORGANTOWN, Ky. – Since longtime Butler County Bears basketball coach Calvin Dockery stepped down from the program in the beginning of April, the school has been on the lookout for its next head coach, and this week, Dustin Barnett was named as the newest leader.

“It’s always been my dream, since I stepped foot on [the middle school court], I knew I wanted to run a high school program. Thankfully this one came open at the right time and I was able to seize the opportunity,” said Barnett.

Barnett is an eighth grade reading teacher who has spent the past 12 years working with the Butler County Middle School basketball team, the past six serving as head coach.

Now he makes the jump to the high school side to lead a Bears program that is coming off some of its most successful seasons in school history.

“I’m hoping we can stay balanced because we do have a lot of pieces of the puzzle to fit in, but I feel like we can make a staple in the third region immediately,” said Barnett.

Of course, the team is losing a key group of upperclassmen who will graduate in the coming weeks, but the chemistry that Barnett has built with the youth in the area, he believes, will play a big role in how early the Bears see success.

“It’s a huge advantage, because whenever I’ve gotten finished with the middle school season here, Coach Dockery’s welcomed me with open arms, as far as coming over to the high school, so thankfully I’ve been able to keep those relationships very strong with those gentlemen,” said Barnett. “They’re ready to get to work just like I am.”

Barnett is a graduate of Murray High School in Murray, Kentucky, and roughly 15 years ago his family made the move to Morgantown.

He has since gained an overwhelming amount of gratitude for the community and the area and sees that sentiment reflected in the players that hit the court, as well.

“The love that they have for their community is something special. They have not only their parents pouring into them, us as teachers, coaches, administration, we’re all on the same page, and we’re really just trying to develop a better ‘BC’,” said Barnett.

Barnett will now take on his first offseason as head coach for the Bears, training the next era of basketball players to be prepared for the 2025-2026 season.