Lagging behind much of the rest of the state in prep sports hasn't just limited the ability of Hamilton County public schools to add to their trophy cases and made it more difficult for local athletes to compete for college scholarships.
Waiting for change to come has also created frustration in a growing number of quality local coaches who are leaving the county's public schools because of what they have cited as a lack of support needed to build and maintain a competitive program.
Some are even giving up head coaching roles to be an assistant elsewhere.
"It did have something to do with me getting out, because I knew they take football more serious here," said Justin Barnes, who stepped down at Soddy-Daisy in January after nine seasons as head coach to become the offensive coordinator at Murfreesboro Riverdale.
Barnes had one of the most successful tenures in program history, leading the Trojans to consecutive region titles in 2018-19 and reaching the playoffs seven times.
"I've got seven guys helping me on offense now, which is almost double the entire staff we could have at Soddy-Daisy," Barnes continued. "None of us got into it for money. We love the game and the kids, but it's a constant struggle in Hamilton County, and you finally reach a point where fighting a losing battle wears you down."
Those words were echoed by Chris Brown, who guided Red Bank to at least the quarterfinal round of the playoffs all four years he oversaw the Lions before leaving in February to become Baylor School's defensive coordinator.
"Hamilton County forces you to decide if you're going to spend extra hours working to do the things it takes to run a successful program or spend that time with your family," Brown said. "You aren't given the resources to do both, so everyone who works in the county eventually has to make that choice."
The list of discouraged coaches includes former Lookout Valley baseball and football coach Lance Rorex, who had a successful run at his alma mater before leaving to take over the baseball program at Silverdale Baptist Academy; former Howard football coach John Starr, who resigned in spring 2021 and is now an assistant at T.W. Josey in Augusta, Georgia; and former Hixson football coach Jason Fitzgerald, who resigned shortly after guiding the program to the 2013 Class 4A quarterfinals to take over at Meigs County.
Fitzgerald was visibly disheartened when he led Hixson from the locker room to the field prior to the quarterfinal game and was met by an empty set of home bleachers. Just before kickoff, he asked a friend on the sideline, "How many fans do we have in the stands?"
The count took just a matter of seconds, and when the answer returned that only 17 people were seated on the home side, Fitzgerald made a vow: "I'm going to find some place that cares as much about the game as I do."
Two months later, he was hired at Meigs County, and the Tigers have become a perennial power, compiling a 72-8 record over the past six seasons with consecutive 2A state runner-up finishes in 2019-20.
"It took so much work just to get the program to that level," Fitzgerald said of his time at Hixson, "and then to feel like the support wasn't there, I just knew it was time to find a place where the people around you were as invested as we were."
In five years at Howard, Starr turned around a program that had not won more than two games in any of its previous five seasons. The Hustlin' Tigers reached the playoffs three times under Starr, who is also remembered for starting a program in which he and his wife would provide breakfast to players (and other students in need) each morning.
"Where do I even begin with my list of sore spots on how far behind Hamilton County schools are than anywhere else?" Starr said. "Leaving Howard was one of the toughest decisions I've ever made, but you reach a point where you recognize the county is never going to make the needed changes that will allow teams to be competitive on the state level.
"The lack of coaches, second-rate facilities, no weight training, shortened middle school seasons and restrictions on booster clubs, all of that is just not conducive to having winning programs. You're handicapping the kids from competing. Sports is an arms race everywhere except in Hamilton County. In Hamilton County, it's just a survival race."
Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6293. Follow him on Twitter @StephenHargis.