Gatlinburg-Pittman football hires offensive coordinator Tyler Williams new coach

Gatlinburg-Pittman football didn't have to look far for the new leader of its football program by hiring Tyler Williams.

Williams has served as the team's offensive coordinator and strength and conditioning coach for seven years.

"G-P is such a special place and it will be the honor of my career to lead the program built by Coach Benny Hammonds and work to continue his legacy," Williams said in a school release. "I would also like to thank Dr. AJ Bennett and our community members for their faith in me. We have a great group of kids returning for next year and one of the best coaching staffs in the state. I could not be more excited to dig in and get to work with the 2024 Highlanders.”

Williams replaces Brad Waggoner who resigned on March 13 after three seasons to become the new football coach and athletic director at Blountstown High School in Florida.

Williams was an offensive guard at Tennessee from 2000-04. He lettered in 2004 and played in the 2004 Cotton Bowl against Texas A&M.

Williams has coached for 19 years, spending time at the collegiate and high school ranks. He was an offensive graduate assistant at Middle Tennessee State from 2005-08 and the assistant head coach/offensive coordinator at Boynton Beach Community High School in Florida from 2008-11.

He was the coach and athletic director at Sycamore from 2011-15, making two playoff appearances and having a 17-25 overall record. Williams' last job before joining the Highlanders was as an assistant coach for Seymour, helping it make the postseason for the first time in six years in 2015.

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Gatlinburg-Pittman has a 29-9 overall record the past three years. This past season it won Region 1-3A and finished 11-2 in 2023. It lost 31-7 in the state quarterfinals to Alcoa, nine-time defending state champions.

Gatlinburg-Pittman will graduate a few of of its star players: linebacker Whittman Whaley, who is a Wake Forrest signee, wide receiver Carlos Orr, who is an Illinois signee and quarterback Brady Hammonds, who is a Virginia Military Institute signee.

Toyloy Brown III is a Knox News sports reporter. Email toyloy.brown@knoxnews.com. On X, formerly known as Twitter, @TJ3rd_.