With spring practices well underway, almost every school in Georgia searching for a new head football coach has found one. Each year, several of these hires prove fruitful, whether as a long-term rebuild or an instant jolt of success. In 2022, that impact hire was Thomas County Central’s, as they snatched Justin Rogers from Colquitt County. Last season, Umbrah Brown led Central (Carrollton) to a 12-1 record with just one year of previous head coaching experience at Paulding County. Here are five 2024 offseason hires that could result in similar success for these Georgia high school football teams and their new head coaches.
Harrison Hoyas Hire Luqman Salam
In 2021, Luqman Salam inherited a dismal Osborne program, one that had not had a winning season since 1994. Just two seasons later, the Cardinals stood at 7-4 and had clinched their first state playoff berth in school history.
Salam now takes the reins at Harrison, a once-legendary football program that has fallen into a rough patch. With his recent experience and a buy-in from the entire program, a rapid return to success is possible.
Jackson Red Devils Hire Thomas Clark
Thomas Clark spent his previous three seasons at Stockbridge, where he led the Tigers to the Class 4A state title game last year and a quarterfinals appearance the year prior.
Now competing in Class 2A with the Red Devils in the 2024 Georgia high school football season, Clark may have little resistance to an immediate turnaround. Jackson went 2-9 last season and struggled to score offensively. Clark’s last Stockbridge squad averaged just under 42.5 points per game. Hope is on the horizon.
Tift County Blues Devils Hire Jeff Littleton
The longtime Bainbridge head football coach will now make the hour-long trip northeast to Tift County. With the Bearcats, Jeff Littleton amassed an impressive resume, winning a state title in 2018 and clinching five region titles. His squads were always challenged in non-region play, but still recovered to enjoy playoff success annually.
Resurrecting Tift County is an arduous task, but a seasoned coach with experience facing talented competition may be the breakthrough Blue Devils fans need.
Camden County Wildcats Hire Travis Roland
Replacing Camden County legend Jeff Herron was going to be tough, but the hire of Travis Roland from Mainland in Florida may be the answer.
Roland won the Class 3S state championship with Mainland last season and compiled a 30-10 record with the Buccaneers in his three seasons there.
Schematically, there may be a slight adjustment period from the former wing-T, but after, the Wildcats should maintain success for the next half decade.
Banks County Leopards Hire Todd Winter
Banks County has never seen a 10-win football season. Holy Innocents’ had only seen one until Todd Winter took over. In his seven seasons with the Golden Bears, Winter reached the quarterfinals thrice and won three region titles. His 2019 squad went 12-1 and defeated top-ranked ELCA, becoming just the second team to do so since 2015.
With a favorable 2024 Georgia high school football schedule and a sizable group of returning seniors, Winter and Banks County could make history en route to their first playoff berth in three years.
