JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Christopher Foy is making the move from the beach back to his alma mater.
The Fletcher football assistant coach was named head coach at Jackson on Friday morning, becoming the next in line to attempt to bring the Tigers back to prominence.
Recommended Videos
Foy, a 1990 graduate of Jackson, said the time was right for the move. He’s got deep coaching roots on the First Coast, the bulk of that at Landmark Middle School. He was there from 1998 to 2013, coaching football, basketball and track.
Some of his athletes at Landmark went on to become the who’s who in area athletics of the 2000s.
Foy coached a future Mr. Football winner in De’Andre Johnson, a couple of future high draft picks, DeMarcus Walker in football and Sean Reid-Foley in baseball, and numerous major college signees along the likes of Jerad Washington, Blake McClain, Jamar Hornsby and Jamari Smith.
Foy lauded the administration — principal Tracolya Clinch and athletic director Kevin Sullivan — for putting the framework in place for a rebirth of the Tigers program.
“It’s really exciting, there’s a great crop of young talent and a community that’s excited,” Foy said. “The leadership is outstanding in Dr. Clinch and Coach Sullivan.
“The opportunity to head up a program is something I’ve always wanted to do. I was privileged to work under outstanding coaches at Fletcher. Coach [Joe] Reynolds, Coach [Kevin] Brown, Coach [Josh] Corey and Coach [Ricky] Medlock. I had aspirations of becoming a high school coach. I just couldn’t turn down the experience I was getting.”
Jackson has cycled through coaches since Kevin Sullivan left following the 2009 season and Quinn Gray resigned after a playoff year in 2010.
Antione Atwater, Richard Barnes, Charron Dorsey, Vernon Edwards, Michael McNair and Adam Ward have served as head coaches or in an interim role since 2011.
From 2011 to ’19, Jackson has gone a combined 15-70. But there’s reason for optimism moving forward. Eight of those 15 victories have come in the last two seasons and the Tigers would have reach the playoffs in 2018, but lost a coin flip to a winless team for the final spot in Region 1-3A.
“We’ve got to start now. It starts in the offseason, getting kids in a position where they can be successful and improve themselves before they can compete on the field," Foy said. “Right now is the most critical moment. We’ve got to establish a rapport before we get into the next physical year. We need to build a foundation and more of a sense of consistency.”