5 Florida High School Football Assistants Quit In Aftermath of Head Coach Being Fired

According to a WCJB TV 20 report, Union County lost five assistant coaches on Monday with most posting Facebook announcements regarding their resignations

Former Union County head coach Andrew Thomas / Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK

5 Union County Assistant Coaches Hand In Their Resignations on Monday

The ripple effect of Andrew Thomas being fired as Union County's head football coach & athletic director was in full force on Monday, with Union County Superintendent Mike Ripplinger confirming in a WCJB TV 20 report that five assistant coaches have quit the program.

One by one, former Union County assistant coaches took to Facebook throughout Monday to announce their intentions to step away from the Fightin' Tigers football program:

Beloved Florida Coach Andrew Thomas Fired After Semifinal Run, Breaks Silence on Facebook

'Effective this morning, I have resigned my position as an assistant coach for the Union County Football Team. I am unwilling to support a decision by county administrators that I felt was unwarranted and unfair. My passion for coaching and my desire to help guide the young men in this program made this the most gut wrenching decision of my career. My heart hurts, but wrong is wrong.'

'For five years I’ve poured my heart and soul into this community. This community has been nothing but amazing to me. These kids I’ve coached have changed my life and hopefully I’ve made half an impact on them as they have on me. I have nothing but amazing things to say about this place. Sometimes god works in funny ways. While I may not agree with what is happening, I would not change the time I’ve spent here. Today , with a heavy heart as a staff, we decided to take a stand for what is right and wrong and step aside from coaching football at UCH. Once a tiger, always a Tiger!!'

'Before rumors get spreaded, I decided to step away from coaching football at Union County next year. I didn’t like the way things were done and feel like things could have been handled differently.. I love Union County and always will!!!'

'Today I made a very hard decision to step away from the Union County Football program. I did not quit on the kids. I am fighting for the kids because I do not believe that the direction that was taken for the program was the right one. I love Union County and always will!'

Union County Superintendent Mike Ripplinger cites parent complaints as one of the reasons to move on from Andrew Thomas

Though the details have been vague on why Ripplinger ultimately decided to move on from Thomas as the Union County head coach, the superintendent did reveal one concern that might've forced his hand: Parent complaints.

In the WCJB report, Ripplinger pointed to parents voicing concerns in the past and from the sounds of it, that may have played a factor in why Thomas was ultimately relieved of his duties as the Tigers' lead man. Ripplinger gave a statement to WCJB regarding the dismissal of Thomas:

“In the best interest of the Union County High School Football Program, both in the immediate and long-term future, the decision was made to part ways with Head Coach Andrew Thomas. Union County is appreciative of the success Coach Thomas had during his tenure. An interim head coach will be named to lead the program through the next season as a search is conducted to find and hire the next head coach for the following spring.”

What's next for the Union County football program?

Per the report, Ripplinger says that interim head coach Lamar Waters has already begun searching for new assistants and says that most of the positions have already been filled.

Summer workouts for the Tigers begin next week on Tuesday and the school is looking to have a full staff prepared to coach up players.

Union County opens the 2025 football season at home on Aug. 22nd when they host the Yulee Hornets at home.

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-- Andy Villamarzo | villamarzo@scorebooklive.com | @highschoolonsi