Charles Fant
Notre Dame High School announced today that Coach Charles Fant, who has served as Head Coach of the football team for the Fighting Irish since 2012, has stepped down from his position. During his 12-year tenure, Coach Fant led the Fighting Irish to historic milestones, including two alumni making appearances in the Super Bowl.
Kareem Orr ‘15 and Patrick Johnson ‘17 achieved this distinction with the Los Angeles Rams and Philadelphia Eagles, respectively. Orr earned a Super Bowl ring for his efforts. The Fighting Irish also secured three region championships, reached three state quarterfinals, two semifinals, and were the TSSAA Division II-AA runners up in 2017.
“Coach Charles Fant is man of honor, integrity, character, and most importantly faith,” said Deacon Hicks Armor, Head of School. “He is the type of individual that Notre Dame aspires to have on our staff. We were blessed to have him and wish him the best of luck on all his future endeavors.”
In his time at Notre Dame, Coach Fant’s teams resulted in 30 athletes earning scholarships to play football at the collegiate level, including for institutions in NCAA Division 1 conferences such as PAC-12, B1G, American Athletic, C-USA, Ivy League, Southern Conference, Ohio Valley, and Big South, as well as various NCAA Division 2, 3, and NAIA institutions.
During Coach Fant’s tenure, the Fighting Irish achieved numerous accolades, including High School All-American, Mr. Football Finalist, Mr. Football Semi-Finalist, six Region Players of the Year, and numerous boys named to Chattanooga Area Best of Preps and All-State teams.
With Coach Fant’s departure, Notre Dame High School Athletics Director Brian Gill and Head of School Deacon Hicks Armor have begun an immediate search for the school’s next head football coach.