When the 2010-19 area basketball season was over, several job head coaching jobs around northeast Georgia were left vacant.
In total, nine boys and three girls head coaching jobs were on the job boards.
On the girls’ side, Cherrelle Pullen was tabbed as the new East Jackson coach. Pullen spent a year as an assistant coach at Cedar Shoals and will replace Donnie Byrom.
“I just want my girls to compete every game,” Pullen said. “Being in a tough region, I look for us to play aggressive right along with the best of them. Whatever our outcome may be, whether we win or lose, I don't want them to become comfortable or complacent, as well as, remembering to stay humble in the process.”
Former Walnut Grove boys assistant coach, Aaron Schuck, takes over the Jackson County’s girls program, replacing Monty McClure.
“The players are hungry to get better and they have done just that since the beginning of June and early on in the preseason,” Schuck said. “There is a blend of senior leadership to complement the youthful energy the sophomores and freshmen bring to the table.”
In Union County, Crystal Beach takes over for Corey Garrett, who moved over to man the boys’ program.
“Our girls are hungry to get out there coming off a great preseason,” Pullen said. “They've bought into our system, trust us (coaches), trust each other, are led by phenomenal seniors, and only keep getting better each and every day which is what you want to see as a coach. I'm very excited and honored to work with this group of young women and watch them get after it this season.”
On the boys' side, the biggest splash hire of the season was at East Hall. Principal Jeff Cooper, somehow, lured former East Hall coach, Seth Vining, out of retirement. Vining coached the Vikings to seven semifinal appearances, twice finished as state runners-up, and won the 2001 Class 2A and the 2003 Class 3A state titles from 1990-2004.
“It has been a humbling experience for Cathy and me,” Vining said. “The response from the community has been overwhelming. We have a great coaching staff that is working to teach our players the way we want to play. It is hard work and the players have to buy into our style of play. We are on a journey. The season is long and it will be a challenge.”
Former North Forsyth girls coach, Eric Herrick, who jumped from Coal Mountain to Dawsonville to replace Chad Pittman as boys coach, earns second place in the biggest hire race.
Herrick coached the North Forsyth girls to back-to-final fours and several region titles in Class 7A.
“Going from coaching girls the last 14 seasons to boys, I feel has been an easy transition,” Herrick said. “I’ve always coached kids hard and had high expectations so that hasn’t changed. It does help that we have a talented group here that is used to winning.”
At Chestatee, former UNG assistant coach, Josh Travis, replaces Kevin Strickland.
“We do have a tough region with some really good teams that I think are capable of competing for the state championship,” Travis said. “It will, of course, be a big challenge going up against that caliber of competition, but we’re excited about the opportunity to get on the floor with those teams. You don’t get to choose who is in your region, all you can do is to compete and that’s our plan.”
After only one season with Chezley Watson in charge, Watson decided to step down after a 1-20 season. The search took them to Huntsville, Ala. to find Jay Burney. Burney is no stranger to Georgia, having graduated from Shorter College.
“We are trying to get better each time we go out and play,” Burney said. “We’ve got to continue to learn and trust the process of what it takes to be successful. This team has got to know we need to be at our best in February.”
Corey Garrett is the new man in charge in Blairsville, moving over from the girls' program back in the spring.
“We have six seniors that have played a lot of different sports, together, for a long time,” Garrett said. “We will depend on their leadership as well as a hard-working and talented sophomore class. We have a lot of football guys that might not get to us for a couple of weeks or so, but we feel that when we get everyone together and back into basketball shape that we can be one of the top teams in Region 8-2A.
Over in Oakwood, former Chestatee assistant and Lumpkin County head coach, Chris Guthrie, will take the reigns of the Johnson Knights.
“I am excited about the possibilities of what the Knight basketball program can be,” Guthrie said. “We will look to build on past success and bring the program to new heights.”
Jackson County hired Ty Baumgardner is a native of Kansas and comes to the Panthers from Westwood, SC. He coached the Red Hawks to a 25-2 record. He also guided Olympic High School in North Carolina to the Class 4A state title.
Cody Anderson is the Habersham Central's fourth boys coach in as many years. He was an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Longwood University in Farmville, Va and a former Habersham graduate. He replaces Brandon Hutchins.
