Tyrus Ward coaches the Brainerd High School girls’ basketball team during a game in December 2013. He is coming back to the school, his alma mater, to take over the football program after working as the head football coach at Nashville’s Whites Creek the past two seasons.Tyrus Ward is coming home. Looked upon as one of the best young high school coaches in Tennessee, Ward has been named the new head football coach at Brainerd, his alma mater.
“This is the place I’ve wanted to be and what I’ve been working toward for the last 10 years,” said the 32-year-old Ward. “When I first got the word that it was official, I took the time to reflect and let it sink in – my whole life, growing up in that community and all the people there who have meant so much to me and helped me become the person I am.
“It’s an honor to lead this community as far as the football program. It’s also an obligation to steer it in the right direction. I understand the duties that are ahead of me, and I’m ready to get to work.”
A 2002 Brainerd graduate, Ward was an all-state selection in football and an All-American in track, where he won a national title in the 400-meter hurdles and was a state champion in the 300 hurdles. He also was a Times Free Press Best of Preps selection as a point guard on the Panthers’ basketball team.
Ward began his coaching career as an assistant at Brainerd, then worked at Red Bank before returning to Brainerd for a second assistant’s stint. He took over as head coach at Nashville’s Whites Creek, a program that had struggled through 27 consecutive losses before his arrival in 2015.