JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – It’s been a busy week in on the high school football head coaching circuit with Atlantic Coast, Keystone Heights and Menendez filling their vacancies.
Familiar names landed in those positions, with Ben White being hired at Menendez and Steve Reynolds moving up to the head coaching role at Keystone Heights. Atlantic Coast tabbed former player Step Durham to try and lead the Stingrays back after a forgettable 0-10 season.
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Durham’s hire had been expected since Mike Montemayor’s resignation. The former Atlantic Coast star remains one of the most prominent players in Stingrays history. He signed with Georgia Tech and played four seasons with the Yellow Jackets. Durham heads back to his alma mater from Wolfson. He helped the Wolfpack go from 2-8 to 5-5 in his one season there, including a 17-16 Week 11 win over rival Englewood. Wolfson lost that game 46-0 a season earlier.
White heads to the Falcons after six seasons at Oakleaf at defensive coordinator. White replaces Matt Potak, who resigned after two seasons and a 10-10 record. It won’t be the final head coaching news this week. Atlantic Coast is set to announce its hire later Tuesday.
Reynolds replaces Chuck Dickinson, the second-longest tenured public school coach in the area. Dickinson resigned after 24 seasons leading the Indians. Among local public school coaches, only First Coast’s Marty Lee has been in his current position longer than Dickinson.
Reynolds knows the area well. He went 9-11 in two seasons at Bradford before heading to Oakleaf to work with Derek Chipoletti. Reynolds was elevated to head coach with the Knights after Chipoletti’s resignation in 2015. He went 8-11 in two seasons there.
High school football coaching changes
| School | Former coach | New coach |
|---|---|---|
| Atlantic Coast | Mike Montemayor | Step Durham |
| Bartram Trail | Darrell Sutherland | Cory Johns |
| Christ’s Church | Koreen Burch | Vacant |
| Fleming Island | Damenyum Springs | Chad Parker |
| Jackson | Christopher Foy | Vacant |
| Keystone Heights | Chuck Dickinson | Steve Reynolds |
| Menendez | Matt Potak | Ben White |
| Oakleaf | Marcus Miller (interim) | Christopher Foy |
| West Nassau | Rickey Armstrong | Vacant |
| Wolfson | Step Durham | Vacant |
Area schools have filled their open positions quickly over the past month. Fleming Island hired Bartram Trail assistant Chad Parker in late December. Bartram Trail replaced longtime coach Darrell Sutherland with Nature Coast Tech’s Cory Johns.