scott smith resigns as topper headcoach

[Homey D Man]

My apologies parrothead didn't mean to not give credit where credit is due! Keep up the good work & thanks for your hard work

 

Honey D Man...if you're going to cut and paste things of TriCitiesSports.com, you at least need to give us credit...

 

 

Science Hill head football coach Scott Smith has resigned his position at the school that he had held for three years since being hired away from Independence High School.

 

"Scott indicated that sometimes one person is just not the right fit for a certain job and this was one of those cases," said Science Hill Athletic Director Keith Turner.

 

Smith went 14-17 in his three years at Johnson City and made the playoffs following the 2008 season. The 'Toppers went 4-6 this past year and missed out on the post-season.

 

Rumors regarding Smith's future had been swirling for some time, but Turner said a health situation regarding the Director of Schools kept the situation from being resolved sooner.

 

"We hate that it drug on, but those were the circumstances," said Turner.

 

Turner stressed the decision was Smith's and that the evaluation of the program was still underway when Smith announced his decision to leave.

 

"We had both agreed that some things needed to be done in certain areas and some things needed to get corrected," acknowledged Turner, "but we were still in the evaluation process."

 

Turner said the job will be posted for at least 10 days before any candidates are indentified for the position.

 

"I think we'll have some good inside candidates and some local candidates that we'd like to talk to," said Turner. "And we'll look down the road as well if the situation warrants."

 

Turner said Smith's teaching position is still his through the end of the school year.

 

"Coach Smith could still stay through the rest of the school year in his classroom," added Turner.

 

Although Smith didn't specifically outline his future plans, Turner expects Smith to look back towards the middle of the state for another head job.

 

"I think he'll probably look to go back down to that area," said Turner. "He's had a lot of success down there, so I would look for him maybe try to get back there."

[compusatman]

Will the school be able to let the new coach bring in as many of HIS assistants as he wants?

 

Also how are the facilities like the weight room, coaches offices and film rooms? Those things do matter to some coaches. Especially if you are trying to lure them away from schools who do provide like DB.

 

Does the school allow for players being able to 'lift' for their PE period during the day?

 

Dad...in regard to the schools facilities Sullivan South was built in 1979 and was the last of the Sullivan County schools to be built. It was put together...well let's just say...with leftovers. The money was tight. It's gym is nothing more than a middle school gym. And Death Valley has a fair stadium with weight facilities but nothing the school has will compare to Science Hill. Not only does Science Hill have tons of money but they will let a successful head coach spend it at will. The school is on a virtual college compus. I would say 50 acres minimum. They are planning to break ground on a new stadium as we speak and I would venture to say it will house 20,000. Every other program they have is championship level. They can't seem to buy a football program. Stacy has embarrased them 4 years running. To steal the lower classification program's coach that has schooled them since he came to South...well, let's just say it would be sweet for them.

[1271]

20,000 seat stadium ? That's neew news. 5,000 seats is closer. A.D. made a mistake 3 yrs. ago. best correction is in Jefferson City.

[formerblazer]

Wasn't ETSU Minidome only around 10,000 for seats? 20k for a high school game...well unheard of around this area. Heck comp at the Boone vs SH game I'd say you had about 1000 Boone people and maybe 500 people from SH.

[RebRaider]

Wasn't ETSU Minidome only around 10,000 for seats? 20k for a high school game...well unheard of around this area. Heck comp at the Boone vs SH game I'd say you had about 1000 Boone people and maybe 500 people from SH.

 

The MiniDome would seat 12,000 for football. I've heard of crowds up to 10,000 for the biggest high school matchups in NET but that doesn't happen too often. I think the Gate City VA - Sullivan South game had 8,000 this year and it isn't odd for South to have 2 or 3 games a year near the 7,000 level.

[topper2010]

i just want to say that alot of us players already miss coach smith, he came to all our games and we were sad when we were told that he was leavin. tuesday was our first day of workouts and we had almos 50 players at the fieldhouse....nobody talking about transferring to other schools, we want to be db andn tenn high not go there....lots of upset friends today in the halls so im just saying we didnt have people missing workouts....we had one day of workouts yall can hate on him all you want to...we miss him good luck coach smith wheere ever you go!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

[compusatman]

Wasn't ETSU Minidome only around 10,000 for seats? 20k for a high school game...well unheard of around this area. Heck comp at the Boone vs SH game I'd say you had about 1000 Boone people and maybe 500 people from SH.

 

The MiniDome would seat 12,000 for football. I've heard of crowds up to 10,000 for the biggest high school matchups in NET but that doesn't happen too often. I think the Gate City VA - Sullivan South game had 8,000 this year and it isn't odd for South to have 2 or 3 games a year near the 7,000 level.

 

The earmark is 5Mil. And the track has to be redone with that money. They admitted that amount of money won't buy a field house or pressbox. Duh. Most estimates are 10mil by the time all is said and done. I doubt seriously they will stop at 5000 seats. Maybe 20,000 is a bit of a stretch but 5000 is more rediculous than 20,000. I would say 10mil might be a bit light as well.

[2000southreb81]

former blazer,

 

Why would the other local coaches be more apt to take the job than Jenkins? what would keep him at Boone that wouldn't keep Carter at South? Stubbs at Bristol?

 

 

Jenkins is not a candidate simply because of his health. Science Hill will want someone to be there for at least 10 years. That will eliminate Turner. They will want the most healthy, youngest, most progressive mind available. They will not want to have to go through this process again anytime soon. Of all the people mentioned so far Stacy Carter is by far the top candidate. Science Hill doesn't want to run an ancient, square jawed, low scoring offense. They want an offense to be high profile in nature and utilize many athletes and be exciting to watch in anticipation of packing the new stadium. Truly their only choice by looking locally is Stacy Carter. C'mon people be realistic here. They hired Smith because he talked a good talk. 5 wide, written books, state champion...yada...yada. They bought the Disney World routine. So that is what they want. They want Hollywood. Stacy Carter will come in and go straight to boot camp. First get rid of the players, parents, and coaches that aren't willing to push the wagon. Next turn the players into believers and produce the Continental Congress. Those forefathers will dictate the mentality and then the replication begins. The process will go faster at Science Hill because I feel if you took a parent/student poll of who they want you would see they would wholeheartedly agree on Stacy Carter. That in and on itself eliminates the first year tug of war with the parents and athletes because they will jump on board like so many survivors of the Titanic. His only issue the first year will be remnant coaches at the Hill who won't buy into Stacy's militaristic views. I mean I don't want him to leave South but if I were the AD at the Hill there would be no question in my mind. And I truly don't think there is a question in his mind. The article in the paper is just smoke and mirrors. They will interview and carry on just to go through the process and make like they had a hard time coming to a conclusion to make sure not to step on any toes. But the reality is...the decision has been made. We are just waiting for time to pass. The more important question is who will replace Carter at South?

 

I heard Carter is going to replace charlie weis at notre dame... in all seriousness... DON'T GO COACH!!! What you have done with this sullivan south football program is truely remarkable. I know you bleed rebel blue, keep it in death valley.

[formerblazer]

Wasn't ETSU Minidome only around 10,000 for seats? 20k for a high school game...well unheard of around this area. Heck comp at the Boone vs SH game I'd say you had about 1000 Boone people and maybe 500 people from SH.

 

The MiniDome would seat 12,000 for football. I've heard of crowds up to 10,000 for the biggest high school matchups in NET but that doesn't happen too often. I think the Gate City VA - Sullivan South game had 8,000 this year and it isn't odd for South to have 2 or 3 games a year near the 7,000 level.

 

The earmark is 5Mil. And the track has to be redone with that money. They admitted that amount of money won't buy a field house or pressbox. Duh. Most estimates are 10mil by the time all is said and done. I doubt seriously they will stop at 5000 seats. Maybe 20,000 is a bit of a stretch but 5000 is more rediculous than 20,000. I would say 10mil might be a bit light as well.

 

I could see say seating for 8k, maybe 10k...but regardless unless SH built up that program again, would they ever come close to that number? Even the two Boone South games....possibly 8k at that game in all and those were huge conference matchups and it all depends on the year the teams are having. I'd say the Musket Bowl was around 6k people this year. 10k...I could see that, but I doubt it would ever actually be used.

 

Geez speaking of which if ETSU ever brought back football heck they could play at SH since well, that's about all you would see at the game. I've never seen the place filled except for bball games when Mr. was playing down there.

[TrenchWarrior]

from the Johnson City Press this morning, fairly interesting.

 

Among the people who appear to be strong candidates, along with current assistant coach Paul Overbay, are:

 

— Stacy Carter, who has built a dynasty at Sullivan South. The Rebels have been one of the state’s best teams since Carter arrived, and he has plenty of playoff success. He’s an extraordinarily good quarterback coach, and he’s hungry to beat D-B — which is the one thing he hasn’t been able to do at South.

 

— Shawn Witten, who guided Elizabethton to the Class 3A state semifinals in just his third season. Witten has quickly adapted to the head coaching ranks, and certainly has the pedigree to be a prime candidate.

 

— Jeremy Jenkins, who led Daniel Boone to an upset of No. 1-ranked Tennessee High and into this year’s Class 5A state quarterfinals. Jenkins is just a solid coach of hard-nosed football, and his team whipped the Hilltoppers this year. Plus, he beat D-B with Daniel Boone talent — at J. Fred Johnson Stadium — this season.

 

— Mike Turner, who led the Hilltoppers to the state quarterfinals back in 1993. The Carson-Newman College assistant was in the running when Smith got the job, and many have said the ‘Toppers made a mistake when they didn’t give him the ball back in 2007.

 

— Steve Brewer, who led Sevier County to the Class 5A state title in 1999 and a 10-1 record this year. Brewer is 4-14 against D-B, but at least his teams have found a way to get the job done occasionally against the Tribe.

 

— Graham Clark, who has tortured the Hilltoppers since taking over as head coach at D-B in 1993. From the if-you-can’t-beat-them-join-them school of thought, what better way would there be to end the 16-game losing streak to the Tribe?

 

— Caine Ballard, who will be coaching Greeneville in the Class 4A state title game Saturday. It’s his first season as head coach, but it’s hard to argue with the results.

 

— Greg Stubbs, who has built a program of excellence at Tennessee High after getting overlooked when the Hilltoppers hired John Bowles. The Vikings have four 10-win seasons in this decade under Stubbs, who is 1-4 against D-B but did beat the Indians this season.

 

All in all, it appears the Hilltoppers should be able to land a quality coach.

 

“I would love to know we would have that quality of applicants, and I think we will,” said Turner. “I would love to talk to people of high caliber, and I’m sure some out-of-state people will ask about it.”

 

Because things didn’t work out so well with the out-of-the-area coach in Smith, look for Science Hill to choose a coach that is familiar to the Hilltoppers’ fans.

 

That JC Press article was the laziest piece of journalism I've ever read. If you look at it, all the author, Doug Fritz, did was take every local coach who was successful this year and proclaiming them all "candidates" simply because of that. Mix in a few old Science Hill players for good measure, and you've got the makings of this list.

 

People are talking about this job like it's Notre Dame or USC or something. Guess what? It's NOT! This is HS football. Any football coach hired would be subject to the salary structures that the JC schoolboard has in place. They could give the head coach a pay raise, but it's not like they can just offer Shawn Witten or Stacy Carter a million dollars to leave programs they're loyal to and have rebuilt. This isn't the SEC!

 

I mean seriously, Graham Clark was on this list? WTF!?!? Why would he leave Dobyns-Bennett for Science Hill? WHY?!?! That would ALSO be a pay cut for him because he'd lose his seniority in the district if he jumped ship. Also, I believe he's only a few years away from drawing a pension from KCS. No way he leaves.

 

Greg Stubbs is also in about as great a situation as he can ask for over at Tennessee High. Why leave a plum situation like that, where he gets to work with his son, make the same amount of money, and have a shorter commute, to start over from ground zero at Science Hill?

 

I also don't see any economic incentive for Jeremy Jenkins to leave Boone. He's an assistant principal there. Science Hill would probably want him as a teacher since they don't need or want to pay another guy in admin now. Sure, the coaching stipend would be higher, but it would probably still be a net pay cut for Jenkins. Just not going to happen. Besides, Boone's got a prime crop of athletes for him to ride over the next few seasons. I just see no compelling reason for him to jump ship.

 

Caine Ballard is probably making about as much at Greeneville now with tenure as he would to start over as the HC at Science Hill. I hear the Greeneville principal can be a pain to deal with, but SH's AD all but trashed Scott Smith as an unprofessional jackass in the JC Press article on Smith's resignation "there were other issues involving teaching, etc. that we were about to fire him over anyway...". I wouldn't want to work for a guy who goes and kicks a soon to be former employee when he's down in the press like that.

 

That leaves Carter and Witten as the other local guys. I suppose that, out of the people on this list, they're the most likely, and people at South are really worried about Carter leaving. Both are pretty young and would probably be getting a pay raise from JCS if they did take the job.

 

However, Witten is a loyal guy and he's football royalty in Elizabethton. The field the team plays on, the one he himself played on, is named after his own grandfather! Elizabethton had basically been planning on handing him the HC job there since he was in college and his brother still holds his football camp over there. I just don't see Witten leaving.

 

That leaves Carter as the guy who has the most incentive to go, but even then it's not as much as people are letting on. Carter is beloved at SS. He's got a great staff. He's rebuilt that program from the bottom into a title contender. Why would he leave? Everyone said that SS would fall back to mediocrity when Curt Phillips graduated, yet they've been elite ever since. Just look at all the adversity they overcome this year! It was more than a handful of talented athletes that have got them where they are. The big reasons I see for Carter to leave is if there's something going on behind the scenes we don't know about, the pay increase at SH, and the long-term zoning plan of Kingsport that figures to shrink SS to a 3A school over the next 10 years. Those are compelling, and coaches have to look out for their own careers, too. But in the present, Carter is in a dream situation at SS. Why leave to take over a program that's never gone anywhere and is apparently an administrative mess?

 

I honestly don't know enough about Brewer or the the former Hilltoppers on this list to comment on them. I would imagine having some connections to the school might be helpful in the hiring process. It usually is. Especially if they know the admin there.

 

This is just such a crap article. Now all of these local coaches are having to answer questions from everyone, including their own players, about whether they're going to stick around next year. It's a real slap in the face to those schools, young men, and communities.

 

Hey Doug Fritz! Haven't you heard the rumor!?! The real reason that Scott Smith was forced out is because SH has a secret handshake deal going with Phil Fulmer! I can't believe you didn't run that one, too!

 

Actually, a source closely related to the school says that Bill Parcells is considering coming out of retirement for this job! Says that the new SH stadium will host sellout crowds of 100K and get them a TV contract on ESPN. Quick! Stop the presses!!!!

[barb]

from the Johnson City Press this morning, fairly interesting.

 

Among the people who appear to be strong candidates, along with current assistant coach Paul Overbay, are:

 

— Stacy Carter, who has built a dynasty at Sullivan South. The Rebels have been one of the state’s best teams since Carter arrived, and he has plenty of playoff success. He’s an extraordinarily good quarterback coach, and he’s hungry to beat D-B — which is the one thing he hasn’t been able to do at South.

 

— Shawn Witten, who guided Elizabethton to the Class 3A state semifinals in just his third season. Witten has quickly adapted to the head coaching ranks, and certainly has the pedigree to be a prime candidate.

 

— Jeremy Jenkins, who led Daniel Boone to an upset of No. 1-ranked Tennessee High and into this year’s Class 5A state quarterfinals. Jenkins is just a solid coach of hard-nosed football, and his team whipped the Hilltoppers this year. Plus, he beat D-B with Daniel Boone talent — at J. Fred Johnson Stadium — this season.

 

— Mike Turner, who led the Hilltoppers to the state quarterfinals back in 1993. The Carson-Newman College assistant was in the running when Smith got the job, and many have said the ‘Toppers made a mistake when they didn’t give him the ball back in 2007.

 

— Steve Brewer, who led Sevier County to the Class 5A state title in 1999 and a 10-1 record this year. Brewer is 4-14 against D-B, but at least his teams have found a way to get the job done occasionally against the Tribe.

 

— Graham Clark, who has tortured the Hilltoppers since taking over as head coach at D-B in 1993. From the if-you-can’t-beat-them-join-them school of thought, what better way would there be to end the 16-game losing streak to the Tribe?

 

— Caine Ballard, who will be coaching Greeneville in the Class 4A state title game Saturday. It’s his first season as head coach, but it’s hard to argue with the results.

 

— Greg Stubbs, who has built a program of excellence at Tennessee High after getting overlooked when the Hilltoppers hired John Bowles. The Vikings have four 10-win seasons in this decade under Stubbs, who is 1-4 against D-B but did beat the Indians this season.

 

All in all, it appears the Hilltoppers should be able to land a quality coach.

 

“I would love to know we would have that quality of applicants, and I think we will,” said Turner. “I would love to talk to people of high caliber, and I’m sure some out-of-state people will ask about it.”

 

Because things didn’t work out so well with the out-of-the-area coach in Smith, look for Science Hill to choose a coach that is familiar to the Hilltoppers’ fans.

 

That JC Press article was the laziest piece of journalism I've ever read. If you look at it, all the author, Doug Fritz, did was take every local coach who was successful this year and proclaiming them all "candidates" simply because of that. Mix in a few old Science Hill players for good measure, and you've got the makings of this list.

 

People are talking about this job like it's Notre Dame or USC or something. Guess what? It's NOT! This is HS football. Any football coach hired would be subject to the salary structures that the JC schoolboard has in place. They could give the head coach a pay raise, but it's not like they can just offer Shawn Witten or Stacy Carter a million dollars to leave programs they're loyal to and have rebuilt. This isn't the SEC!

 

I mean seriously, Graham Clark was on this list? WTF!?!? Why would he leave Dobyns-Bennett for Science Hill? WHY?!?! That would ALSO be a pay cut for him because he'd lose his seniority in the district if he jumped ship. Also, I believe he's only a few years away from drawing a pension from KCS. No way he leaves.

 

Greg Stubbs is also in about as great a situation as he can ask for over at Tennessee High. Why leave a plum situation like that, where he gets to work with his son, make the same amount of money, and have a shorter commute, to start over from ground zero at Science Hill?

 

I also don't see any economic incentive for Jeremy Jenkins to leave Boone. He's an assistant principal there. Science Hill would probably want him as a teacher since they don't need or want to pay another guy in admin now. Sure, the coaching stipend would be higher, but it would probably still be a net pay cut for Jenkins. Just not going to happen. Besides, Boone's got a prime crop of athletes for him to ride over the next few seasons. I just see no compelling reason for him to jump ship.

 

Caine Ballard is probably making about as much at Greeneville now with tenure as he would to start over as the HC at Science Hill. I hear the Greeneville principal can be a pain to deal with, but SH's AD all but trashed Scott Smith as an unprofessional jackass in the JC Press article on Smith's resignation "there were other issues involving teaching, etc. that we were about to fire him over anyway...". I wouldn't want to work for a guy who goes and kicks a soon to be former employee when he's down in the press like that.

 

That leaves Carter and Witten as the other local guys. I suppose that, out of the people on this list, they're the most likely, and people at South are really worried about Carter leaving. Both are pretty young and would probably be getting a pay raise from JCS if they did take the job.

 

However, Witten is a loyal guy and he's football royalty in Elizabethton. The field the team plays on, the one he himself played on, is named after his own grandfather! Elizabethton had basically been planning on handing him the HC job there since he was in college and his brother still holds his football camp over there. I just don't see Witten leaving.

 

That leaves Carter as the guy who has the most incentive to go, but even then it's not as much as people are letting on. Carter is beloved at SS. He's got a great staff. He's rebuilt that program from the bottom into a title contender. Why would he leave? Everyone said that SS would fall back to mediocrity when Curt Phillips graduated, yet they've been elite ever since. Just look at all the adversity they overcome this year! It was more than a handful of talented athletes that have got them where they are. The big reasons I see for Carter to leave is if there's something going on behind the scenes we don't know about, the pay increase at SH, and the long-term zoning plan of Kingsport that figures to shrink SS to a 3A school over the next 10 years. Those are compelling, and coaches have to look out for their own careers, too. But in the present, Carter is in a dream situation at SS. Why leave to take over a program that's never gone anywhere and is apparently an administrative mess?

 

I honestly don't know enough about Brewer or the the former Hilltoppers on this list to comment on them. I would imagine having some connections to the school might be helpful in the hiring process. It usually is. Especially if they know the admin there.

 

This is just such a crap article. Now all of these local coaches are having to answer questions from everyone, including their own players, about whether they're going to stick around next year. It's a real slap in the face to those schools, young men, and communities.

 

Hey Doug Fritz! Haven't you heard the rumor!?! The real reason that Scott Smith was forced out is because SH has a secret handshake deal going with Phil Fulmer! I can't believe you didn't run that one, too!

 

Actually, a source closely related to the school says that Bill Parcells is considering coming out of retirement for this job! Says that the new SH stadium will host sellout crowds of 100K and get them a TV contract on ESPN. Quick! Stop the presses!!!!

I thought for sure Spurrier would make the short list...but I guess his big win over Clemson priced him out of the market

[coach1076]

coachinghopeful I see where you are coming from & i noticed that he mentioned every coach in the area too. Bad article with absolutely no solid pieces of information. But, as far as SH not being able to offer more than the other schools...well that all depends on how much the boosters really support them. If they get involved there can be a few thousand extra added in, albeit under the table money but this happens at a lot of places. Also, the school system can add in things such as paying the coach for field maintenance, which he may or may not have to do & paying him an extended contract. There are several ways to up the salary of a coach if a school wants him bad enough. Im sure some of the coaches on that list already get some of those benfits where they are at.

 

High school football is much more competitive now days, with games being televised by ESPN & the pressure to get your players in college & seen by recruits. That is why you see coaches leaving schools & moving to other states just for coaching positions. Look at the new coach at Oak Ridge, originally from California where he was a coach, moved all the way to Hillsboro & then when OR came calling & offering more money he moves again. The days of High school sports just being a game are over & gone.