TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - Back in December, East Gadsden head football coach Corey Fuller resigned to take over the head coaching spot at Godby High School. Since then, the hunt has been on to find the new head coach of the Jags.
The search ended Monday, when East Gadsden introduced their new head man, and they didn't have to look far, as West Gadsden head coach Joey Striplin has taken over the reigns of the Jaguar program.
Striplin is no stranger to Gadsden County, as he's been a head or assistant coach in the county since 2010, even serving on East Gadsden's staff in 2013.
"I think it's exciting for the community, for the football program here," he said Monday. "I was in a great place, but moving to a bigger school and to compete at the 4A level, to get to this point to help the kids out here be successful, I feel really good about it and I'm ready to get started."
What happens now at West Gadsden? The school board is still set to discuss a proposal that would merge the two high schools for next school year, and Striplin said he's ready for whatever they decide.
"Even if there's no merger, I feel like the program here is going to be a high powered program," he stated. "If you add that factor in to it, if it doesn't happen this year or next year, you're going to get a big group of players that are athletic and big guys that love to play football. I don't think we're really, football wise, I don't think we're really worried about the merger, I think it'll be other teams worried about our merger."
The Gadsden County School Board is set to look at the proposal again later this week.
