VALDOSTA At first glance, the Wildcats that took the field at the Valdosta High practice field for the first day of spring practice this week didn’t look https://www.cheshuntteamministry.org.uk much different than the team that stood in their place a year before.
Working with a quicker tempo, the ’Cats spent a majority of their time installing their system on both sides canada canada goose goose outlet in usa of the ball under the watchful eye of Alan Rodemaker before ending the two and a half hour session with a 30 minute scrimmage between Canada Goose Outlet the offense and defense.
No longer is Rodemaker solely responsible for the defense. After succeeding Rance Gillespie canada goose outlet toronto factory as the new head coach, he must oversee every aspect of the program for the first time since his days with canada goose store Peach County.
During that stop with the Trojans, Rodemaker learned the importance of delegating power as a head coach, and canada goose factory outlet that’s exactly what he did in his first practice as the man in charge of the Wildcats.
”I do a lot of that in my meetings, I’m not with the offense a whole lot during practice,” Rodemaker said Wednesday. ”I do watch them a little bit early, but cheap canada goose really I’m not with them. I try to coach those coaches and help direct them and give them my advice and my ideas
”I trust those guys. I hired them to do a good job.”
Aside from some in house deck shuffling, Rodemaker has brought in a total of seven new coaches to the staff at Valdosta High official canada goose outlet three on each side of the ball and a kicking specialist.
The most wholesale changes come on the offensive side of the ball where Tucker Pruitt will serve as the offensive coordinator after serving a year in the same position across town at Lowndes.
Pruitt, whose system uses principles from the Clemson offense designed by Chad Morris and Gus Malzan’s attack at Auburn, will Canada Goose sale also fill the void as Valdosta’s quarterbacks coach in the wake of Keith McConnehead’s move to head coach of the ninth grade team.
Former Wildcats running back coach Reggie Mitchell also finds himself in a new role as the athletic director of canada goose outlet store Valdosta City Schools, leaving last season’s offensive quality control assistant Jason King uk canada goose outlet to take canada goose outlet online uk over the vacated position.
Former Tift County standout and University of Georgia receiver Israel Troupe is slated to serve as Valdosta’s varsity wide receivers coach after serving in the same position on Colquitt County’s Canada Goose Online ninth grade team a year ago.
Thomas Reese, who served as Valdosta State’s running backs coach over the past two seasons as a graduate assistant, is the man replacing Dan Inman as the Wildcats’ tight ends coach. Reese will also handle special teams responsibilities while Andy Gibbs works with the kickers.
Offensive line coach Matt Winslette is the lone offensive coach serving in the same position he did the year before.
Though Rodemaker’s involvement should ensure Valdosta’s defense won’t look all that much different on the canada goose outlet uk field, there canada goose outlet shop are still a few fresh faces canada goose outlet parka joining the staff on that side of the ball.
Gone is defensive backs coach Gary Mintier, canada goose black friday sale who moved on to Camden County, and in his place is the combination of new defensive coordinator Adam Carter and former Prattville (Ala.) High DBs coach Kendall Lacey.
Carter, the defensive backs coach at Marietta, will work closely with Rodemaker to run the multiple defenses the new head coach was known for over his six seasons as the Wildcats’ defensive coordinator, as well as serving as the safeties coach in the secondary. Lacey will primarily focus on cornerbacks.
In addition to the two defensive holdovers in defensive canada goose outlet reviews line coach DeMario Jones and linebackers coach Ryan Branch, Stacy Duckworth is a face Wildcat fans should recognize.
Duckworth coached the defensive line at Valdosta under Gillespie in 2012, and after John Gamble’s departure to take a job closer to his canadian goose jacket family at Upson Lee, Duckworth returns to the Azalea City from Coffee to fill the void as the defensive ends coach.
”The first thing I would say is, they’re young,” Rodemaker said, analyzing his first hires as head coach of the Wildcats. ”But I would say they all come from really good programs, they all have good knowledge, and I’m going to tell you, I’ve checked references to the nth degree, and I’ve talked to people that know them over and over again More than anything, they’re good people.
”They are excited about having a chance to coach at Valdosta High School. I think with that, they’ll grow here. They’ll grow as coaches, they’ll as people, and I like putting our players around good people.”
Besides Duckworth, who has more than 20 years of experience as an assistant at Tift County, all of the position coaches hired by Rodemaker are in their late 20s. Both coordinators are in their early 30s.
Rodemaker said he looked for hungry, young coaches to fill the open positions on the staff.
Desiring a staff that’d stick with the ’Cats through the move to the new Valdosta High School in Fall 2018 and beyond, Rodemaker claims he told candidates interested in the position that if they couldn’t give him a three year commitment he would look elsewhere.
”I think what set Valdosta apart from a lot of other schools back in the day was, they had staff continuity for 20 30 canada goose outlet online years,” Rodemaker said. ”From (Wright) Bazemore to (Nick) Hyder, and then Hyder’s staff was really the same for 20 years.