Sixteen-year Burke County head coach Eric Parker announced his retirement Wednesday.
Parker led Burke County to a state championship in 2011. The Bears won seven region championships with Parker at the helm. And Burke County qualified for the state playoffs every year under his leadership.
Parker coached for 10 seasons at Laney before moving to Waynesboro, and he long ago established the reputation as the area’s most successful and admired football coach.
Area fans have been happy to see that Coach Parker seemed to recover well from the incident as he has been active in many ways, including the sharing of his wisdom and humor on Facebook.
Parker suffered a heart attack during the second quarter of a road game at Wayne County during the latter part of last season. Long time assistant coach Anthony Williams acted as the head coach for the Bears for the remaining three games.
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The following statement from the Burke County Public School System was released Wednesday Morning:
Coach Eric Parker Announces Retirement
After 208 wins, 33 seasons, and 26 of those served as head coach, Burke County High School’s head football Coach Eric Parker has officially decided to put down the ball.
Wednesday morning, Coach Eric Parker announced his decision to retire from his coaching position. This announcement places a sentimental bookend to his 26-year head football coaching career that began at Lucy C. Laney High School in 1997, where he turned around a Wildcats Program that had not made the postseason playoffs since 1990 and led it to two region championships in ten seasons.
Parker moved to Burke County in 2007, where he has won 140 games in 16 seasons including 7 Region Championships and the 2011 State Championship. Under his leadership, the Burke County Bears advanced to the state playoffs every year.
Parker’s coaching talent is demonstrated not only in the success of his players but in his accolades as well. A few additional accolades include his membership in the 2011 Georgia Athletic Coaches Association Football All-Star Game Coaching Staff and his honor of 2011 Augusta Chronicle Coach of the Year.
“I think I speak for everyone when saying thank you to Coach Parker for 16 years of hard work, dedication, and commitment to our school system,” stated Superintendent Dr. Angela Williams. “Coach Parker is leaving some big shoes to fill. He has been an excellent leader and mentor to our students on and off the field. One of the best ways we can honor him is by keeping our program moving forward. We will begin our search for a new head coach immediately.”
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About that Search
Fans and observers throughout the state will be interested in finding out who might become the new head coach in Burke County, the CSRA school with the best facilities and infrastructure by a wide margin.
Chris Henry, who retired in 2018, was the assistant superintendent for the Burke County Public School System in 2007. And he chaired the search committee that made the recommendation to hire Parker to the superintendent, who then made the recommendation to the Board of Education. Wednesday morning, Henry relayed a story about a phone call with legendary Lincoln County head coach Larry Campbell, Georgia’s all time winningest coach.
“I remember a phone call with Larry Campbell at LCHS, and Larry telling me we were fools if we did not hire Eric,” Henry said in an email.
Possible candidates to replace Coach Parker include Thomson head coach Michael Youngblood, who is fresh off a class 2A state championship run last season in his fifth year, and Franklin Stephens, the current head coach of McEachern.
Stephens has led McEachern for four seasons, where he won two region championships. Before McEachern, Stephens coached for five seasons at Ware County and at Lamar County for two after starting his head coaching career at Tucker, where he won two state championships.
Both Youngblood and Stephens are Burke County alumni, both played football for Georgia Southern, and both have served as assistant coaches for Burke County in the past.
Follow Chad Cook’s coverage of local sports on Facebook, and Instagram at @AugustaPressSports, and on Twitter at @AugPressSports
