S

The Franklin County High School football Rebels are in search of a new head coach following the resignation of Justin Cunningham Monday, and the position is expected to be filled within the next week.

FCHS Athletic Director Kelly Kennedy said a new head coach could be hired as soon as Tuesday as the administration considers the applicants for the position.

“We’ve posted the job for five days, and we’ve had a couple people interested, but we also have a lot of good options in-house that we’re looking at,” she said. “We hope to know what our next move will be on Tuesday.”

Kennedy said that the upcoming start of spring football practices adds to the need to name a new head coach in a timely manner.

“No matter who the head coach is going to be, there’s always going to be a transition period between what coach Cunningham prioritized and what this new coach is going to prioritize, what kind of plays they’re going to run and if they choose to move kids into different positions,” she said. “We need to get that person in as soon as possible to start making those changes.”

Kennedy added that the spring practices are generally a good time for football teams to come together as they primarily focus on weight-lifting and conditioning drills.

“That’s just a really good time for teams to bond. You take away the position play, you take away the stress of practice and learning the game, and the guys can just meld as a team,” she said.

Cunningham, a 2005 graduate of FCHS, resigned from his position with the Rebels to become the offensive line coach at Boyd Buchanan School.

In his three years as the head coach for the gridiron Rebels, Cunningham notched an overall record of 14-18 and led the program to playoff appearances in 2021 and 2022, ending a postseason drought for FCHS football that had lasted for more than a decade.

The Rebels posted a record of 7-4 in Cunningham’s last year with the program in 2022, giving the program its first winning season since 2004.

Kennedy praised the work that Cunningham has done as the head coach of the Rebels.

“It’s always disappointing when you lose a coach that’s taken a team to the postseason in back-to-back seasons,” she said. “He’s clearly done a good job. He’s brought in some wonderful assistant coaches that have really helped to strengthen the program.”

Kennedy went on to wish Cunningham well in the next stop of his career at Boyd Buchanan.

“We’ll definitely miss him, but Boyd Buchanan is definitely getting a good coach,” she said. “We thank him for the job that he’s done.”