The Spectator finished second in the General Excellence (Division A) category. They didnt a few years earlier when Hal Mumme, Guy Morriss, Dana Holgorsen and a certain mad scientist offensive coordinator were around. VALDOSTA, Ga. (WALB) - On Monday, Valdosta State University (VSU) Athletics Department announced a new head coach to lead the Blazers in the upcoming . VPD arrests Brooks Co. man for narcotics during traffic stop Which, again, means football. Most of all, we'll have a defense that can prevent free points and take the football away to give our offense better opportunities. Goff continued on the outstanding tradition of VSU football as the Blazers won their first ten games of the season, ranked #1 nationally throughout the regular season and a berth in the second round of the NCAA Division II Football playoffs. The things you had to do with the players because they didnt have as much. Shawn Glosek. BREAKING: McNeese hires Valdosta State's Gary Goff - American Press 'For the culture': Jackson becomes VSU's first Black head football coach. (Ronald Martinez / Getty Images), Chris Hatcher went 76-12 and won the 2004 D-II National Championship in seven seasons as Valdosta States head coach from 2000-06. Goff began as a walk-on for the Blazers in the spring of 1993 after transferring to VSU from the University of Mary in Bismarck, N.D. Sitting now in his spacious office at Georgia, Smart makes clear that the story is not a myth that grew over these 19 years. That season, Goff also had the programs first Academic All-American as 74 players finished the 2016 fall semester with a 3.0 grade point average or higher. The players would leave the hot practice field and be handed a peanut-butter sandwich and a banana, and then had to lie on the floor inside to try to get cool. Rounding out the top three were The Red & Black at University of Georgia in first place and Technique at Georgia institute of Technology in third place. (Cavan would later become SMUs coach, too.) "We're going to be physical, we're going to be hard-nosed, we'll have an offense that can still light up the scoreboard," Jackson said. Even during a national championship run last year, Valdosta States average attendance was about 6,100. Goff, who was a receiver for Mumme, Leach and Holgorsen in the 1990s, is also back. The majority of VSU students voted for the team and an increase in student fees. They wouldnt have made them in an SEC locker room, but at the same time, from a players perspective, thats pretty cool when your coaches are making lockers. The first athlete from the VSC football team to play professional football was Jesse Tuggle. Valdosta State was the first school to offer a safety at Bainbridge High School named Kirby Smart, and at one point Leach thought they were going to get him. In 2009 VSU finished in 3rd in the Gulf South Conference and 4th in 2011. Its hard to say that because you enjoy what you do, and Ive enjoyed every stop Ive had on the coaching carousel, and Ive been in a lot of places. Tremaine Jackson - Head Football Coach - Football Coaches - Valdosta Reinhard gets asked all the time: Why not move Valdosta State up a level? [5] That year the Blazers missed the playoffs for the first time in the Chris Hatcher Era, despite an 82 record and a top-ten ranking. Two notable alumni are Jessie Tuggle, National Football League linebacker from 19872000 playing his entire career with the Atlanta Falcons, and Chris Hatcher was quarterback in the programs first national football tournament in 1994 and was that year's Harlon Hill Trophy winner. I hate comparing it to that but it was more of what I was raised in, because my Dad was a high school coach, and its closer to the form of high school coaching, at least it was then. Bailey Wilson of Glennville, Georgia, finished third in the Best Photo Essay (Group I) category for her coverage of VSU Housing and Residence Lifes annual Hallaballoo event on the Front Lawn. The previous staff did an excellent job with this team, which is full with talent and potential. Head Coach Gary Goff begins his third season at the helm of the VSU Blazers. He is the driest, funniest individual I think Ive ever met. And now this uncommonly large group of multimillionaire coaches looks back at their stint in this small town and thinks: This was the time of our lives. Both were now part of the Saban tree, where they were indoctrinated in a philosophy of run-oriented, physical football. During Goff's playing days he led the Blazers to their first ever championship in 1996. That opportunity came through the mail one day in the form of a videotape: Hal Mumme, then the head coach at NAIA school Iowa Wesleyan, sent Reinhard the tape of his offense, throwing the ball up and down the field. Earle Solomonson accomplished this at North Dakota State University in 1985.[7]. (Football & Baseball) bcostello@valdosta.edu (229) 333-5897 or 5477 (229) 333-5897 or 5477: Footer I am honored and humbled to be named the Head Football Coach at Valdosta State University, Jackson said. Under their leadership, the Wildcats won six national titles, 21 of their 23 state titles and 282 Cleveland Field victories. It is 100 percent true. Those lockers the coaches built, incidentally? VALDOSTA For the first time in 40 years of Valdosta State football, the Blazers will have a Black head coach. I have for years kind of snickered when people talk about Miami of Ohio as the cradle of coaches. But everything was fun when they were winning. In 1994 the Blazer won a school record 11 victories and Quarterback Chris Hatcher won the Harlon Hill Award as player of the year in NCAA Division II football. You have permission to edit this article. Massillon, Ohio football to play Valdosta, Georgia in 2023 I was single, young, I was probably three years difference from the players. He is the head football coach at McNeese State University in Lake Charles, Louisiana, a role he assumed in December 2021. UA 16 2 1 - Valdosta State University Head Football Coach - Valdosta State University Athletics Goff will be introduced to the Lake Charles public . I kid people that it was the most fun Ive ever had coaching, Smart said. Using figures from the NFL's Play Football website, Valdosta's win total stands at 941 entering 2023. . "The column was a sports column about the football team, with the focus being on Coach Tremaine . The two seasons were a part of a GSC record 35 straight regular season victories. I absolutely can not think of a better coach than I couldve had hereto deal with what we dealt with over the last three years. It was the most important time in my career.. Baseball Coaches - Valdosta State University Athletics This was serious business. Valdosta State begins its search for their next head football coach, Teens arrested after 11 injured in South Carolina park shooting, Turner Co. Sheriffs Office to reward $1K for information on fireworks incident. 2 Ferris State, Blazer Head Coach Kerwin Bell Accepts Offensive Coordinator Position at South Florida, Former Blazer Gary Goff Named Valdosta State Head Football Coach, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Valdosta_State_Blazers_football&oldid=1150310740, American football teams established in 1982, 1982 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state), Articles with dead external links from March 2023, Articles with dead external links from February 2022, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2010, 2018, 2019, 2021, NCAA Division II Team Playoff Participants, 1994, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2021, This page was last edited on 17 April 2023, at 11:56. I'm just honored to be the coach here and the reception I've gotten on social media, in person it's all been positive in the same. In 2009 and 2011 the Blazers had 64 seasons and missed the Division II playoffs. Head coach . is coming off a 12-2 season and a trip to the Division II state semifinals. Seth also covered South Carolina for The State from 2005-10. During one game in that 2000 season, he broke his headset one can imagine how and taped it around his head and waist so that he looked, as Reinhard put it, like a Revolutionary War character. It stayed that way the rest of the game. "I told them I love them. He had one of the top offenses in country in 2016 averaging 434.5 yards per game, while his quarterback Antonio Pipkin was a Harlon Hill nominee and was named GLIAC Player of the Year. And off the field, Leach brought his wit and wisdom to anyone who wanted it. Valdosta State is the second football program to make a historic coaching hire in the last two months as Jackson joins Valdosta High School head football coach Shelton Felton as the second man of color to be named head coach of a football powerhouse in Valdosta. He was named the new head coach after last season. VSU has always been a special place to my wife and I, and we look forward to joining the community. During Jacksons tenure at Colorado Mesa, he went 10-3 in his two seasons, including 8-2 this season, and posted a thrilling 26-21 victory over then-No. Hatcher left VSU after the 2006 season to be the head football coach at Georgia Southern University, he left Valdosta State with a 7612 overall record, a .864 winning percentage, and was the winningest coach in Blazer history. Goff takes off: VSU head coach Gary Goff leaving for McNeese State VALDOSTA, Ga. (WTXL) One month ago, the Valdosta State football team kicked off spring practice. Wells earned American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) All-America honors, was a finalist for the prestigious Harlon Hill Trophy and recently named the GSC Offensive Player of the Decade. They were young coaches on the cusp of a revolution, but nobody realized it, including the coaches and players themselves. In 1994 the Blazer won a school-record 11 victories, and with quarterback Chris Hatcher, played in the program's first national football tournament. I beat Kirby more than he beat me, Muschamp said. Jackson comes to Titletown from Colorado Mesa University where he was the head coach the past two seasons. Ryne Strickland. The Valdosta State football team represents Valdosta State University in football. VSU finished the season ranked No. Powell Hall West, Suite 1120. He led his 2021 Valdosta team the NCAA Division II Football Championship Game, where they lost to Ferris State. Coach Goff spent the last three seasons as the Blazers head football coach. One month ago, the Valdosta State football team kicked off spring practice. What everyone remembers is that it was hard work, but also fun. And as he filled out his defensive staff, Muschamp brought down one of his former Georgia teammates, Kirby Smart. He is an incredible coaching talent who truly cares about VSU. Copyright 2021 WALB. Prior to his two-year head coaching stint at Colorado Mesa, Jackson was thedefensive line coach at Texas State and defensive coordinator at Abilene Christian in 2017-18. Welcome to the job, now hire a football coach. I was very surprised, he said. VSU head football coach Gary Goff . FHSAA prep football: Lester Davis named Seabreeze head coach Following a two-year stint coaching Valwood High School (1998-99) in Valdosta, Georgia, Miller returned to the collegiate ranks at Washington and Lee University, serving as the wide receivers coach. The 2018 season saw the Blazers go the campaign unbeaten at 140, earning the seventh GSC championship in program history and a fourth national championship by defeating Ferris State University 4947 in the national championship game in McKinney, Texas. Leach becomes third former VSU asst. to be named HC in SEC | State [13] Bell was formerly the head coach for the Jacksonville Dolphins, prior to joining Valdosta State. Obedience. He is the head football coach at McNeese State University in Lake Charles, Louisiana, a role he assumed in December 2021. Laying the foundation for what this Blazers program can be moving forward. Kemp signed an undrafted free agent contract with the Tennessee Titans of the NFL in April. But Reinhard wanted something different. Gruber, an English major (focus in journalism) from Baxley, Georgia, joined The Spectator about 18 months ago, starting as a reporter and working her way to campus life assistant, entertainment editor, and now editor-in-chief. They had just left happy hour at a Ruby Tuesday at the mall when they discovered that Doschers wifes car was gone. CMU finished in the top 20 nationally in both total defense (10th 258.2 ypg) and total offense (16th 452.0 ypg). Now Reinhard looks to hire his seventh head football coach. I am very excited to have Coach Gary Goff join our team and I am confident he is going to be a great addition to Blazer football, the university and our community, Reinhard said at Goffs introctory press conference. Tremaine Jackson - Head Football Coach - Staff Directory - Valdosta State University Athletics Tremaine Jackson Title Head Football Coach Email football@valdosta.edu Phone (229) 333-5970 Discipline. During his time in Titletown, Goff helped lead the Blazers to their first Gulf South Conference title in 1996 and the first two NCAA playoff seasons in program history in 1994 and 1996. He then earned a scholarship culminating in being named a team captain in 1996. Valdosta State University has had a football team since 1981. They learned things they wouldnt have if they had started at a larger school. The official Football Coach List for the Valdosta State University Blazers Skip To Main . Bonner paused a moment.