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. announced the forming of a football team, VSU president Hugh C. Bailey called an early morning 1981 meeting which included VP for Business Sam Brooks, Athletic Director Billy Grant and coach Dave Waples. The stadium is also the home of the historical Valdosta High School Wildcats. Its impossible for me to answer that question without talking about football. VALDOSTA - Valdosta State football coach Gary Goff announced Sunday that he has taken the head coaching job at Division I and Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) member McNeese. Staff Directory - Valdosta State University Athletics Powell Hall West, Suite 1120. "I said, 'Well, I'd walk backwards from Houston to Valdosta, Georgia if (they'd have me)," Jackson said. He was named the new head coach after last season. The work of journalism, including that of student journalists, is essential to a functioning democracy and well-informed public. 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. The Main Street Office will host the Brown Bag Concert Series in Downtown Valdosta from May 1 to May 5. He is the head football coach at McNeese State University in Lake Charles, Louisiana, a role he assumed in December 2021. Jackson comes to Titletown from Colorado Mesa University where he was the head coach the past two seasons. Valdosta Main Street hosts Brown Bag Lunch Concert Series Tremaine Jackson was formally introduced as the 11th head football coach in school history Thursday afternoon. Goff came to VSU from NCAA Division II Tiffin University in Tiffin, Ohio, where he has been the head coach of the Dragons for the past eight seasons. The student-journalists made campus history when they finished second in the General Excellence category. Delta State University defeated the Blazers 3531, despite being down 28 points at the beginning of the second half. In 2002 VSU made its first national championship appearance with a 3124 loss to Grand Valley State University. Fresh off a Division II national championship appearance, Valdosta State's Gary Goff is the 18th head coach in McNeese State football history. Steel's Jewelry Blazer Athletes of the Week. I was lucky to have that job. The Blazers were also GSC Champions in 2004 after an 111 regular season. Theres photo evidence for a story about Muschamp that also became legendary around the school. 2008 and 2010 were the only years VSU has made it to the NCAA Division II playoffs since the 2007 National Championship season. Were gonna be pretty good if we play with 12!, The room laughed. Goff will be introduced to the Lake Charles public . Good news came within a few minutes: The car was found on the other side of the mall, still running. Bazemore-Hyder Stadium Weekly Previews FloSports FAQ Tremaine Jackson Title Head Football Coach Email football@valdosta.edu Phone (229) 333-5970 Discipline. Lawsuits, secret taping and the unraveling of a powerhouse high - ESPN Im also excited about the opportunity to bring back to VSU a Blazer alum. Throughout his long and storied high school coaching career, Coach Propst has been involved in various scandals. Then theres the short answer: Didnt winning those four national championships feel good? Fourteen practices later, and spring ball wrapped up Friday night with practice number fifteen, the Blazer's annual spring game. "I told them I love them. Even during a national championship run last year, Valdosta States average attendance was about 6,100. Valdosta State wraps up spring practice with annual spring game Friday I came here because of Mr. Reinhard. Smart was hired anyway. VALDOSTA, Ga. (WALB) - Valdosta States Athletic Director Herb Reinhard said, You probably couldve knocked me over with a feather. They had just left happy hour at a Ruby Tuesday at the mall when they discovered that Doschers wifes car was gone. It is 100 percent true. He then earned a scholarship culminating in being named a team captain in 1996. VALDOSTA The Spectator, the unfiltered, uncensored voice of the students at Valdosta State University, recently earned seven 2023 Georgia College Press Association Better Newspaper Contest awards, including five staff and two individual recognitions. VSC had its first winning season in 1986 with a 92 record led by All-American Jessie Tuggle. Earle Solomonson accomplished this at North Dakota State University in 1985.[7]. In 2006, ESPN would proclaim the city to be Titletown, USA, and the locals collectively shrugged as if to say: Well, of course.. I want to thank Dr. Carvajal and Mr. Reinhard for the opportunity to lead my alma mater. Not just Blazer football, but Valdosta State University. Kerwin Bell era: 2016-2018 [ edit] Kerwin Bell was named head coach of the Blazers on January 22, 2016. And I'm talking about what he brings to the table, he brings to the table with passion sincere passion," Reinhard said. But they had also seen how the Air Raid worked at Valdosta State. Baseball Coaches - Valdosta State University Athletics There had been people on social media wanting him ousted early in the season, so the column was me taking a stance, saying that he shouldn't be fired but should be given some leeway since he didn't exactly inherit a perfect situation.. 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. Those lockers the coaches built, incidentally? That's been awesome.". The use of software that blocks ads hinders our ability to serve you the content you came here to enjoy. Doscher, the strength and conditioning coach, said he knew back then Muschamp and Smart were going to be successful. 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. The Blazers started the season ranked No. Dean was previously the offense coordinator for the Blazers. Grit. Those are the type of guys that when they talk about being all in, theyre all in.. It is fantastic to know that the Blazer football program will be led by Gary and I look forward to watching him build on VSUs incredible tradition of success.. 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. There will be an official introductory press conference for Jackson on Thursday at 2 p.m. in the arena of The Complex. Pickups. When he was introduced to the schools football coach, Mike Cavan stuck out his hand and smiled. They were young coaches on the cusp of a revolution, but nobody realized it, including the coaches and players themselves. Two years later the Blazers won the national championship, and they have won three more since then, including last year. They like to hunt and they like to fish. And as he filled out his defensive staff, Muschamp brought down one of his former Georgia teammates, Kirby Smart. J.H. Jackson coached two Academic All-America players this season and one AFCA Second Team All-America honoree, along with 21 All-Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) performers, including RMAC Offensive Freshman of the Year in Karst Hunter. I was single, young, I was probably three years difference from the players. CMU finished in the top 20 nationally in both total defense (10th 258.2 ypg) and total offense (16th 452.0 ypg). While the team never saw the field in 2020 due to the pandemic, Reinhard said it was one of Goffs most successful years. We physically did it, he said. Former Samford coaches include Bobby Bowden (later head coach at West Virginia and Florida State), Wayne Grubb (who led Samford to the NCAA College Division West Region II Championship in 1971), and Terry Bowden (later head coach at Auburn, North Alabama and Akron). 1 even with the upsetting finish. Shawn Glosek. I think that's going to get us off to a good start.". The work was tough. Goff had 16 Dragons named to G-MAC All-Conference teams in 2018. And yet the football is the best in the state: Valdosta High School has won 24 state titles, Lowndes High School has another five, and the private Valwood School has six. 1 for four weeks but finished with a 93 record and their fifth straight playoff berth. Under Dean the Blazers also won the 2012 national title. But at Valdosta State, the coaches themselves were helping with the laundry. As fate would have it, as the Cougars were preparing for the Birmingham Bowl against Auburn, Jackson happened to be in Houston watching the Cougars practice when Belk asked Jackson if he would be interested in the Blazers' head coaching job. What everyone remembers is that it was hard work, but also fun. At quarterback, Hatcher led the Blazers to their first-ever playoff appearance in 1994 and won the Harlon Hill Trophy, the Division II version of the Heisman. "Grid Times" Valdosta State University Football Preview 2006. The award-winning design, a front-page cover, was created by Gavin Ponder, an art major from Augusta, Georgia, who serves as graphics editor for the newspaper. In 2012 the Blazers posted a 122 record for the year and beat Winston-Salem State University 357 in the NCAA Division II National Football Championship in Florence, Alabama. Valdosta is a South Georgia city located in Lowndes County, where football is everything. The official Baseball Coach List for the Valdosta State University Blazers Skip To Main . Mumme wanted the ball back.. Low 51F. They lost in the first round of the NCAA Division II playoffs to UNC-Pembroke 2421. Fourteen practices . More important than the on-field product, Jackson brings a reputation as a star recruiter and a champion of academic excellence. As a player, Jackson began his college career at Louisiana-Monroe before transferring to Texas Southern for his final junior and senior seasons. Valdosta Athletics Football Blazer Game Day Schedule Statistics Roster Tremaine Jackson Show Choose a Staff Member: Gary Goff Title Head Football Coach Email gwgoff@valdosta.edu Phone (229) 333-5970 Head Coach Gary Goff begins his third season at the helm of the VSU Blazers. Marty McGhin. Goff was named Gulf South Conference Coach of the Year in 2021, and Co-Coach of the Year in 2019. And secondly, when he was here, if you were having a bad day, you could go over and sit in Leachs office and laugh for two or three hours. 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. But it was still a third wheel locally to the high school teams, a sleepy college football program that befitted the sleepy Spanish moss trees that dot the campus. Sitting now in his spacious office at Georgia, Smart makes clear that the story is not a myth that grew over these 19 years. Pipkin tallied seven Tiffin career records and four GLIAC records, ranking 13thall-time in career total offense, 19thin total offense per game, 27thin career passing yards, and is only the third quarterback at the Division II level to ever accumulate at least 2,000 rushing yards and throw for 10,000 passing yards in a career. The long answer is about finances. Hatcher was only 26 years old. "This is special," Jackson said. BeforeWest Virginia Wesleyan, Goff coached at Division I Princeton University where he was the pass game coordinator and receivers coach. He played for former Blazer head coach Hal Mumme and former offensive coordinator Mike Leach at Valdosta State and graduated in 1996. Jessica Pope I think the individual awards gave the winners a lot of motivation by proving that they can do anything they set their minds to. 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. Valdosta had been ranked as high as No. So you had to sit in there and had to run the study hall and make sure they behaved and had their stuff in there.. 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. . Bailey directed each to quickly move toward fielding a varsity team. Paul Leavy | Special to the TimesNew Valdosta State head football coach Tremaine Jackson speaks during his introductory press conference Thursday. Graduate Assistant Athletic Trainer (Football, Men's and Women's Tennis) jballow@valdosta.edu. Goff's first season saw the Blazers record an undefeated regular season, a second consecutive GSC championship and extend their winning streak to 25 consecutive games before being upset in the second round of the playoffs by West Florida, 3835. Reinhard gets asked all the time: Why not move Valdosta State up a level? 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. Junior long snapper Pippin Davis was named Second Team Academic All-America by CoSIDA. They enjoyed their time together, breaking from football stuff to play lunchtime basketball games. Published: Jan. 3, 2022 at 11:45 AM PST. 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. (229) 333-5897 or 5477. It focused on encouraging students to exercise their right to vote. She is an English major (focus in journalism) and a political science minor. Jackson's coaching career spans 16 years, having started as a defensive line coach at Texas A&M-Kingsville in 2006. There was broken glass on the ground where the car had been parked. One night, Leach was out with a group of people including Michael Doscher, the teams strength and conditioning coach. It was a great leap of faith by Reinhard, but he found a lot to like about Hatcher, including his connections. Dana Holgorsen, who had played for Mumme at Iowa Wesleyan, arrived in Valdosta in 1993 as a graduate assistant, then moved up a year later to coach quarterbacks and receivers. They had to help with the laundry, lead study hall or hand out Chick-fil-A sandwiches to players at lunch. Most of all, we'll have a defense that can prevent free points and take the football away to give our offense better opportunities. Holgorsen currently serves as the head coach at the University of Houston, while Belk serves as Holgorsen's defensive coordinator. Valdosta Daily Times. Herb Reinhard drove in on a January day in 1992 to interview for the newly vacant job of athletic director at Valdosta State. Titletown, the locals now tell you, isnt just about high school football. They get jobs that are 0-for the year before and get told to fix it. In 2018, Goff had his best season at Tiffin as he guided the Dragons to a 9-2 campaign and a 6-2 record in the Great Midwest Conference as the team began the season 9-0. Like he did with Mumme in 1992, Reinhard went out of the box again, this time by reaching back to the Mumme-Leach tree. Valdosta might be a 24-time state football champ, but lately its program has been rocked by a racial discrimination lawsuit filed by a former coach, the hiring of controversial coach Rush Propst . 'For the culture': Jackson becomes VSU's first Black head football coach And it was. Reinhard was smitten. Three words that Valdosta State University Head Football Coach Tremaine Jackson lives by that have become fundamentals in his coaching philosophy. Shane Thomas | The Valdosta Daily TimesValdosta State Director of Athletics Herb Reinhard speaks to reporters following an introductory press conference for head football coach Tremaine Jackson Thursday. On November 28, 2022, at approximately 8:27 am., a Valdosta Police Officer responded to a commercial business in the 1600 block of Clay Road after the owner called E911 to report a burglary. 2 Blazers beat Argos in South Regional, POLING: Standers to the front of me, sitters in, By Shane Thomas shane.thomas@gaflnews.com. All rights reserved. Tucked in the lowest, central part of Georgia within miles of the Florida line Valdosta is only the 14th-largest city in the state. The Blazers were fourth nationally in completion percentage (.701), while finishing 14th nationally in first downs gained (276). According to the Blazers' new leader, the goal for the returning Blazers is to finish the mission they fell short of in the national championship game. Valdosta High School (GA) Varsity Football - MaxPreps.com Head coach . I am truly honored and blessed to return to VSU and carry on the rich tradition of success that has been established within this football program, Goff said. I am honored and humbled to be named the Head Football Coach at Valdosta State University, Jackson said. I believe that the players, I hope that the players have enough trust in us and have seen our track record that we have had some success bringing in good, quality coaches that they will give us the opportunity to do what we need to do before they let emotion have them make a decision in regards to the transfer portal, said Reinhard. Leach was the coordinator all five of those years. Among those countless resumes was Jackson's, which Reinhard said he put in the "good stack" with the other top candidates. The Blazers also were outstanding on defense as the team was 32nd nationally in total defense, allowing 311.5 yards per game and held teams to a 111.71 passing efficiency for 33rd nationally out of 166 NCAA Division II programs. The Blazers play in BazemoreHyder Stadium in Valdosta, Georgia, which has a capacity of 11,249. [11] Dean left the Blazers to coach a single, unsuccessful year as co-offensive coordinator at FBS program Georgia Southern; both co-coordinators were fired after one year. A triumvirate of power at one of the national powers, who can all pull from Valdosta experience. He amassed a 22-3 record, one national championship appearance, and one conference title. The Blazers also have won 9 Gulf South Conference football championships (1996, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2010, 2018, 2019, 2021*). Leach becomes third former Blazer football assistant named HC at SEC "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. The official Baseball Coach List for the Valdosta State University Blazers. Bazemore-Hyder Stadium - Wikipedia VPD arrests former business employee for burglary - Valdosta Today It was the Mavericks first victory over a top 5 opponent since they became an NCAA Division II school in 1994. After three years, he was gone. Copyright 2023 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. He called up Joe Kines, who had been his DC at Georgia, who told him: Theres no book for that. During his second season in 2017 the Blazers finished 5-4 overall and 53 in conference. And earlier this summer, Leach called Goff at midnight eastern time, because Leach is now at Washington State. At least they had air conditioning. VALDOSTA, Ga. The program needed new lockers. Mikes real. It was that way with laundry, too: At the bigger school, everything would be handled by equipment managers or janitorial staff. Hes told me this many times: Goff, theres only a couple head coaches that Im ever jealous of and Im always jealous of whoever the coach is at Valdosta, because I love Valdosta, Goff said. Kentucky hired Mumme as head coach after the 1996 season. Tiffin was ranked as high as No. 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. To show this fan base how much better they are. Garys offenses have been among the most prolific in the country and he will certainly continue and build on our history and tradition of fast-paced, explosive football. In his first year Dean's Valdosta State team won the 2007 Division II National Championship. Welcome to the job, now hire a football coach. Despite the demands for a team, Valdosta State University, then Valdosta State College, did not form a football team Bama Adams The Spectator finished third in the Best Editorial or Editorial Series (Group II) category and second in the Best Campus Community Service: Editorial (Division A) and Best Campus Community Service: News (Division A) categories. The Blazers then capped off the season with an eight-game winning streak and their second national championship title win against Northwest Missouri State University, 2520. "Just really proud about the growth and proud of our coaches, for going and getting better players," he said. Jackson becomes VSU's first Black head football coach, BUSH: Staying on top of 401K can pay dividends, Carvalho, No. This was serious business. They looked good! Bonner said. Few people, relatively, were watching. Coaches Wright Bazemore (1941-1942,1946-1971) and Nick Hyder (1974-1995) combined for fifty years of service to our youth and community. They soon learned that it had been stolen to be used as the getaway car for a jewelry robbery. David Dean, former VSU offensive coordinator, is the current football head coach at Valdosta State University.