Ted Gatewood resigns as East Hamilton football coach after 10 years at school

Ted Gatewood, the only head coach in East Hamilton High School football history, has resigned after 10 years with the program.
Ted Gatewood, the only head coach in East Hamilton High School football history, has resigned after 10 years with the program.
photo Ted Gatewood, the only head coach in East Hamilton High School football history, has resigned after 10 years with the program.

Ted Gatewood, who has been the head football coach at East Hamilton High School since it opened 10 years ago, has resigned from that job.

Gatewood, who oversaw the program since its inception - when a storage trailer was used for a locker room - announced his decision to the team Friday afternoon.

"Sometimes you just reach a point where you believe a program needs a new voice in charge," said Gatewood, whose career has been noted for building programs. "That happens at most places, and I felt like it was time for our team to have new leadership. I still want to continue coaching, but I just feel like it's time for a fresh start."

East Hamilton finished 4-7 last season, falling in the first round of the Class 4A playoffs.

photo Ted Gatewood coaches East Hamilton players through pregame drills before the Hurricanes faced East Ridge on Sept. 1, 2017.

Gatewood guided the Hurricanes to a 53-58 overall record, including 6-6 in six postseason appearances. East Hamilton reached the playoffs in the program's third year and advanced to the quarterfinals each of the following two seasons, including an 11-2 finish in 2012, when the team won a region championship.

Gatewood's football tenure at East Hamilton was second in Hamilton County in seniority behind Tyner's Wayne Turner, who has been in charge of that program since 1990.

"Ted has been here since day one and has done a phenomenal job as a coach and is also a heck of a teacher," East Hamilton principal Brent Eller said. "The kids love him, and that says a lot about what he's meant to them.

"I've already gotten several calls today, so I know there will be a lot of interest. We're just beginning the process, so we'll talk with the assistants and then see who has applied and begin narrowing it down. We'll focus on getting the right person and not worry so much about how long that takes."

Gatewood, who has a 97-104 overall record, began his head coaching career at Ooltewah in 1997. At that time, Ooltewah was the only Hamilton County program to have never reached the state playoffs, but the Owls made the postseason in 2000 and advanced to the semifinals the following season, appearing in the playoffs in four of Gatewood's eight seasons there.

East Hamilton joins Boyd Buchanan and Walker Valley as Chattanooga-area football programs with head-coaching vacancies.

Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6293. Follow him on Twitter @StephenHargis.

Upcoming Events