LaFAYETTE, Ga. -- When Evan Swindall takes the football field next year for the Ole Miss Rebels, his biggest fans will be there.
Citing a desire to watch his son play, LaFayette High School football coach Perry Swindall has resigned after two years at the Walker County school. The coach, his wife and 16-year-old son made the decision over the holidays.
"It's a tough decision because we've become so close to the kids here, but it's the best thing for the family," Perry Swindall said. "My wife already has several teaching job opportunities in Mississippi, and I think I'll be able to land one without too much trouble. It's time for us to be able to see Evan play and be a bigger part of his life. I'm putting my children's needs ahead of everybody else's and that's the first time I've done that."
Swindall, who retired after a successful career in Alabama, took over a program that won four games in the previous three years and won 11 games in two seasons, including a 6-4 mark his first season. Student participation in the program increased dramatically and the community filled the school's stadium on Friday nights.
"The program is on the right track," Swindall said. "The kids have worked hard and they have really turned the corner. It was difficult telling the team, but I feel good about what we've done here."
LaFayette principal Roger Hibbs said the school will move forward and hopefully have a new coach in place in the coming weeks.
"It kind of caught us off guard," Hibbs said. "I received a letter of resignation and I presented that letter to our superintendant. That's as far as we've gotten."
Swindall and his family started discussing the possible move this fall after making the trip to Oxford, where Evan Swindall is a freshman center.
"We found out it's almost impossible to get there after a Friday night game here," Perry Swindall said. "Physically it's not fair to my family or the kids at LaFayette. Sunday's are full days for high school coaches and I was worn out. I hate it for the kids here, but by making the decision now I'm giving everybody the opportunity to make the best move possible."