ECS tabs Ensworth assistant

Evangelical Christian School has turned to one of the state's top high school programs for its next football coach.

The Eagles announced Thursday that they had picked Jonas Rodriguez to replace Alan Durham, who was let go after two seasons in charge. Rodriguez comes to ECS after most recently serving as the associate head coach and defensive coordinator at Nashville Ensworth, where he helped the Tigers win Division 2-AA state championships in 2011, 2012 and 2013.

He's also coached at Montgomery Bell Academy, his alma mater.

"I am around football and football coaches every day and Jonas Rodriguez is one of the best young coaches you're going to find anywhere in America," said Barton Simmons, the director of scouting for 24/7 Sports. "This is a guy that SEC coordinators have praised to me but who is born to coach high school football."

Rodriguez takes over a program that was hit hard by injuries in 2016 and finished 2-9, the school's worst record since it began playing football in 1974. Historically though, ECS is one of the area's best programs; its four state championships rank second among Memphis' private schools.

"I'm incredibly excited," said the 35-year-old Rodriguez, who was a three-sport standout at MBA before playing football for four seasons at Yale.

"The entire ECS community has already been tremendously welcoming and there's a lot of energy throughout the school. I look forward to not only building great football players but also to building men of strong integrity and character."

Reach Varlas at john.varlas@commercialappeal.com or on Twitter @johnvarlas