By trade Ron Cox has been a builder all of his adult life. For the past nine years Cox also constructed the Sale Creek High School football program, starting from scratch and building a solid foundation that took the team to the Class 1A playoffs each of the past five seasons
Cox, though, announced his decision to step down Monday, opening the door for a new coach to take over.
"It's just time," said Cox, who will continue teaching construction at the school. "When I was given the chance to come start the program I said God opened that door because there was no other reason why I would be given the job. I had only been a middle school coach for three years and it was a huge challenge to start a program.
"I feel like we've brought it through the tough times and now it's just time for someone else to take it to the next level. It was a very hard decision, especially seeing the faces of our players when I told them, but I know it's the right thing to do.
"I'm extremely proud of what we've done here. It's a program the players and community can be proud of and I'm excited to see what they can do in the future."
The Panthers football program began in 2013 and after two winless seasons claimed its first win in the second week of the 2015 season, beating Concord Christian. Later that same season Sale Creek won its first region game by beating Lookout Valley.
Sale Creek reached the playoffs for the first time in 2018 and has advanced to the postseason every season since, including a program-best 5-6 finish in 2021 when the team won five of its last eight games.
During Cox's tenure the program also was able to have a new stadium constructed -- with the team playing its first home game in 2021 -- along with locker rooms and a new weight facility. One other aspect Cox helped with was building up the roster from 18 in the first season to more than 46 last year.
The team finished 4-7 last season, the fourth straight year of at least four wins, and Cox ends his career with a 25-79 overall record in nine seasons.
Contact Stephen Hargis at shargis@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6293.