Edgar Denton grew up a Viking. A running back in the Lowndes system, he was on the 1999 team that won a state championship. From there, he attended Reedley College in Reedley, California, where his Tigers won a state and a national title. After two years in Reedley, Denton went to Northern Michigan University, where he finished his playing career. Once he graduated, he was ready to come back south and coach the game he loved. “I was ready to go wherever I could. I wanted to help kids in the area I came from,” he said.
The only opening he could find was in the Valdosta city system – the very system he spent most of his formative years battling. And the opportunity came from another former Viking. Royce Thomas, who also attended Lowndes, was Newbern’s head coach. He hired Denton as an assistant on the offensive side of the ball. When Thomas left coaching to become an assistant principal, he recommended Denton for the head coaching job. “I wasn’t sure I was ready but I didn’t want to turn down an opportunity,” he said.
After just two years as an assistant, Denton became head coach. Now in his fifth year at the helm of Newbern’s program, Denton has enjoyed every day of his job. With the middle school program falling under the umbrella of the high school team, there isn’t a lot of wiggle room with what schemes the coaches can run. However, under head coach Rance Gillespie, the Valdosta High offense is fairly complicated, which offers Valdosta’s middle schools a little more flexibility than most. “When I came in, I did a lot of what we had been doing. But I made a few changes. I’m able to tailor our system from year to year, depending on the personnel we have. We base everything off what the high school team does but Coach Gillespie gives us a big window with what we need to run,” he said.
Like this month’s other Coach’s Corner feature, Andy Rykard at Hahira Middle, Coach Denton has had to deal with a drop in numbers 
at Newbern. The first three years he was head coach, numbers were down, which affected how the team performed. Last season, Newbern’s best under Denton, numbers rebounded and he was able to put 35 kids on the field.
“Our eighth grade team won every game but one,” he said. “We lost to Tift by two points. Our seventh graders won four games. We had a lot of kids who could do multiple things and do them well. It was a great season all around.”
This year, at the time of this writing, Newbern is 1-1 and Coach Denton is looking forward to getting better as the season progresses. “We have good talent both offensively and defensively,” he said. “We’ve got good numbers and our kids play hard.”
Coach Denton and his wife, Sharah, have two children: a son, Jalen, 9, and a daughter, Laila, 5. “It takes a lot of sacrifice to coach. My family, and that includes my parents, have been a great support system. I wouldn’t be able to do what I’m doing without them,” he said.
So what does the future hold for Coach Denton? He’s a young coach at the beginning of his career. Would he one day like to move up to another level? “Yeah, I would like to coach at the varsity level one day. But right now, I have two young children and I can be there more with them where I am. I still need to learn more about the game, especially defensively. But I’d like to move up. When the time is right, God will lead me there,” he said.
The Wildcat Way. The tradition. The championships. The legacy. It’s deeply entrenched in everything in and around Valdosta. That level of play, that rivalry – it was tough when he went to Newbern. “It was awkward at first. But when I bonded with the kids, I got used to it. Some of my old teammates told me I was wearing the wrong colors,” he said with a smile. “But I’m helping kids in my area and that’s bigger than anything else. I’ve been a Wildcat since 2007.”
Coach’s Corner/South Georgia/October 2014
Edgar Denton
J.L. Newbern Middle School
Valdosta, Georgia
Robert Preston Jr.
Former Viking heads Newbern’s football program
Coach’s Corner/South Georgia/October 2014
Edgar Denton
J.L. Newbern Middle School
Valdosta, Georgia
Robert Preston Jr.
Former Viking heads Newbern’s football program
Edgar Denton grew up a Viking. A running back in the Lowndes system, he was on the 1999 team that won a state championship. From there, he attended Reedley College in Reedley, California, where his Tigers won a state and a national title. After two years in Reedley, Denton went to Northern Michigan University, where he finished his playing career. Once he graduated, he was ready to come back south and coach the game he loved. “I was ready to go wherever I could. I wanted to help kids in the area I came from,” he said.
The only opening he could find was in the Valdosta city system – the very system he spent most of his formative years battling. And the opportunity came from another former Viking. Royce Thomas, who also attended Lowndes, was Newbern’s head coach. He hired Denton as an assistant on the offensive side of the ball. When Thomas left coaching to become an assistant principal, he recommended Denton for the head coaching job. “I wasn’t sure I was ready but I didn’t want to turn down an opportunity,” he said.
After just two years as an assistant, Denton became head coach. Now in his fifth year at the helm of Newbern’s program, Denton has enjoyed every day of his job. With the middle school program falling under the umbrella of the high school team, there isn’t a lot of wiggle room with what schemes the coaches can run. However, under head coach Rance Gillespie, the Valdosta High offense is fairly complicated, which offers Valdosta’s middle schools a little more flexibility than most. “When I came in, I did a lot of what we had been doing. But I made a few changes. I’m able to tailor our system from year to year, depending on the personnel we have. We base everything off what the high school team does but Coach Gillespie gives us a big window with what we need to run,” he said.
Like this month’s other Coach’s Corner feature, Andy Rykard at Hahira Middle, Coach Denton has had to deal with a drop in numbers at Newbern. The first three years he was head coach, numbers were down, which affected how the team performed. Last season, Newbern’s best under Denton, numbers rebounded and he was able to put 35 kids on the field.
“Our eighth grade team won every game but one,” he said. “We lost to Tift by two points. Our seventh graders won four games. We had a lot of kids who could do multiple things and do them well. It was a great season all around.”
This year, at the time of this writing, Newbern is 1-1 and Coach Denton is looking forward to getting better as the season progresses. “We have good talent both offensively and defensively,” he said. “We’ve got good numbers and our kids play hard.”
Coach Denton and his wife, Sharah, have two children: a son, Jalen, 9, and a daughter, Laila, 5. “It takes a lot of sacrifice to coach. My family, and that includes my parents, have been a great support system. I wouldn’t be able to do what I’m doing without them,” he said.
So what does the future hold for Coach Denton? He’s a young coach at the beginning of his career. Would he one day like to move up to another level? “Yeah, I would like to coach at the varsity level one day. But right now, I have two young children and I can be there more with them where I am. I still need to learn more about the game, especially defensively. But I’d like to move up. When the time is right, God will lead me there,” he said.
The Wildcat Way. The tradition. The championships. The legacy. It’s deeply entrenched in everything in and around Valdosta. That level of play, that rivalry – it was tough when he went to Newbern. “It was awkward at first. But when I bonded with the kids, I got used to it. Some of my old teammates told me I was wearing the wrong colors,” he said with a smile. “But I’m helping kids in my area and that’s bigger than anything else. I’ve been a Wildcat since 2007.”
