- December 26, 2025
Girls basketball coach George Butts didn’t know he was about to win his 500th game six years ago until his principal at Atlantic High School told him.
“The principal said, ‘you’re playing for your 500th win.’ I said, ‘I am? When did I get my 100th?’” Butts recalled. “I never keep up with that stuff.”
But his longtime assistant coach, Mike Ebert, does. After coaching at Atlantic for 25 years and Calvary Christian for two years, Butts is now in his third season at Flagler Palm Coast. The Bulldogs’ 58-26 win over Bartow on Dec. 22 in the Bulldog Classic was Butts’ 584th career victory, according to Ebert’s records.
That number is significant because it puts Butts ahead of former DeLand boys coach John Zeoli as the all-time winningest high school basketball coach in Volusia and Flagler counties. Zeoli won 583 games from 1981 to 2014, according to the Florida Association of Basketball Coaches' records.
When Butts won his 500th on Jan. 16, 2020, against New Smyrna Beach, fewer than 20 girls basketball coaches in the state had achieved that milestone. Former Fort Lauderdale Dillard coach Marcia Pinder, who died in 2021, leads the list of Florida girls coaching victories with 996. Pinder’s teams won 10 state championships.
Former FPC coach Javier Bevacqua, who stepped down in 2021, has the most girls basketball coaching victories with the Bulldogs with 239 in 12 seasons.
Winning games was not the reason Butts became a coach, he said.
“I give praise to God that I’m able to come out here and help change lives,” said Butts, who is also pastor/bishop at New Heart Christian Center in Daytona Beach. “If I can help (the players) get into college, that’s what it’s all about. I don’t care about wins. Everywhere I go it’s about ministry and mission.”
The Bulldogs (7-3) lost to Winter Park 44-37 on Dec. 23 on the second night of the 16-team boys and girls Bulldog Classic. It was their fifth game in eight nights. Winter Park improved to 10-3.
“We made some crucial turnovers down the stretch,” Butts said. “I’m very proud of them. They battled, and that’s all I can ask. This is the best team I’ve had since I’ve been here.”
Stephanie Turner led FPC with 12 points in the loss. Lexi Brown had 10 points and 15 rebounds.
The Bulldogs are off until Jan. 2 when they visit county rival Matanzas at 3:30 p.m.
