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First-year head coaches for prep football must learn quickly

Lance Rorex has experience as a head coach in high school baseball, but now he's in charge of Lookout Valley's football program. Many of the important lessons for first-year coaches are about things that happen outside the lines and not on Friday nights.
Lance Rorex has experience as a head coach in high school baseball, but now he's in charge of Lookout Valley's football program. Many of the important lessons for first-year coaches are about things that happen outside the lines and not on Friday nights. Lance Rorex has experience as a head coach in high school baseball, but now he's in charge of Lookout Valley's football program. Many of the important lessons for first-year coaches are about things that happen outside the lines and not on Friday nights.

By Ward Gossett 4 min read

FIRST TIME AROUND

First-year head coaches of TSSAA teams in Chattanooga-area high school football:› Randall Boldin, Whitwell, Region 3-1A› Gary Murray, Hixson, Region 2-4A› Josh Roberts, Signal Mountain, Region 3-3A› Lance Rorex, Lookout Valley, Region 3-1A› Dennis Therrell, Bledsoe County, Region 3-2A

When asked what he learned in his first year as a head football coach, Central’s Cortney Braswell replied, “Man, what I didn’t learn would make that list a lot shorter.”

Now in his second season, Braswell – formerly a veteran assistant who worked for several outstanding programs, including Bradley Central and Notre Dame – matured on the job last year, just as a handful of first-year head coaches in the Chattanooga area will try to do this year. It’s a group that includes Whitwell’s Randall Boldin, Hixson’s Gary Murray, Signal Mountain’s Josh Roberts, Lookout Valley’s Lance Rorex and Bledsoe County’s Dennis Therrell.

Returning to the area but with two years of experience as a head coach is Brainerd’s Tyrus Ward.

“You’re the only guy that’s worried about the whole (program),” Braswell said. “The team across the field doesn’t care how many coaches you have, whether you’ve slept the night before or how much money you have in the program.