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By JOYANNA LOVE/ Senior Staff Writer

Brad Abbott is moving up from assistant coach to head football coach at Maplesville High School.

The Chilton County Board of Education approved the head football coaching supplement for Abbot during a special called meeting on June 11.

After the board meeting during an interview, Superintendent Jason Griffin said Abbott was recommended by a search committee put together by Principal John Howard.

“I am personally overjoyed that he took the position,” Griffin said. “Coach Hubbert is going to be a tough act to follow, but Brad has actually followed him before (at Jemison) so he knows exactly what it is all about.”

In a phone interview on June 12, Abbott said he had been approached about the position but initially turned it down.

“It wasn’t because I didn’t want it,” Abbott said. “I just wanted to make sure that we found the best coach.”

The selection committee looked closely at two other prospective coaches, whom Abbott said would have done a good job. Neither of these candidates accepted the job, which Abbott took as a sign that he was supposed to be the next MHS coach.

“I’ve learned that God is going to get his way regardless of what we try to do because I was constantly praying to God to send the right person to our school,” Abbott said.

Abbott stressed that he wanted whomever was best whether it was himself or someone else.

Having started his coaching career at MHS in 1996, Abbott went on to become a part of the coaching staff at Jemison High School before returning to MHS in 2012. He had followed Brent Hubbert to JHS to be his defensive coordinator and then took the head coach position when Brent Hubbert went to Maplesville. Abbott commented that he told Hubbert this will be the last time he follows him as coach at a school. The two coaches have remained friends.

He has been the assistant football coach at MHS for the past seven years.

Abbott said even before the coaching transition “we were very excited about this team” for the upcoming school year.

“We thought it would be a fun group to coach, and we knew that these guys were going to work hard,” Abbott said.

Training has already begun for next season.

“We are right where we need to be right now,” Abbott said.

He is also a graduate of MHS and said his interest in coaching began when he was a football player for the school when Jim Hubbert  was coach.

He called coaching at his alma mater “a neat scenario.”

Abbott is an English teacher at MHS.

Abbott thanked the school administrators, community and Hubbert  for the support they have shown him.