Darrell Jolley has been named the new head coach of the Franklin County High School girls basketball team, according to a press release sent out by the school on March 20.
Jolley has held various coaching roles across multiple sports at FCHS, Huntland, North Middle and South Middle since 1992, including stints as the head coach of the FCHS softball team and the cross country teams of FCHS and Huntland over the years.
He had most recently been an assistant coach with the girls basketball program for the past three seasons before being named the interim head coach following the departure of Amber Gilliam in December 2023.
The Rebelettes finished the 2023-24 season with a record of 8-17 and went 6-14 after Jolley took over head-coaching duties.
“With his many years of coaching experience and dedication to athletes in the Franklin County area, Coach Jolley's wisdom and knowledge will continue to be beneficial to player development and aid in building a strong basketball program,” the press release said.
After shifting from an interim role to the official job, Jolley said that he is excited to be taking over the program and is hoping to build a successful team to increase local support.
“(The players) need support. They want to see people in the gym watching them play. That’s what these kids need at every level. The kids love to see people in the stands,” he said. “We need to start getting better so we put people in the stands.”
Jolley said one of the first steps for his team will be tryouts at the end of the school year as the Rebelettes will be looking to increase their depth with a new coach leading the way.
“I do have some (injured players) that will be back this year, and I’ve got some kids that have shown interest about coming back out that have quit,” he said. “They’re going to have to develop over the summer, and they’re going to have to get in the gym and work. They’re going to have to dedicate themselves for us to be better.”
The development of the players over the summer includes plans to attend summer camps at Middle Tennessee State University and Riverdale, Jolley said.
Jolley added that building a competitive program is important because it could help to avoid scenarios where players might consider transferring to other schools to land in a more favorable situation.
“We want to quit losing kids to surrounding counties, and being competitive is going to hopefully stop that,” he said. “We want them to be here in Franklin County. That’s going to help us more than anything.”
Jolley is also the head coach of the baseball and boys basketball teams at North Middle School, and he confirmed that he is planning on stepping away from both roles at the end of the school year to focus on his new position.
