High School

Former Georgia state champion head football coach tabbed to takeover at Niceville (Florida)

The Eagles narrowed down the field to seven finalists before deciding on Monday

Andy Villamarzo

Niceville (15) Johnny Lewis jr runs against Lakeland Friday December 6 , 2024 in Lakeland Fl. Ernst Peters/The Ledger
Niceville (15) Johnny Lewis jr runs against Lakeland Friday December 6 , 2024 in Lakeland Fl. Ernst Peters/The Ledger / Ernst Peters/The Ledger / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

After narrowing down the list of finalists to seven, Niceville High School on Monday decided on who its next head football coach would be.

The Eagles have named former Marietta (Georgia) lead man Richard Morgan as the next head football coach. Morgan guided the Blue Devils to a state championship in 2019, ending what had been a 52-year drought for Marietta.

Morgan comes a well decorated head coach from the Peach State as the former Blue Devils' head coach compiled 224 victories (.716 winning percentage) along with eight final four appearances and three state championships overall.

Now Niceville will look to pickup where they left off after reaching the Class 5A state semifinals last season, but will have to do so without a key piece on the offensive line in Jakobe Green, who just recently transferred back To Gadsden County.

The Eagles moved in quickly to replace former head coach Grant Thompson, who owned an overall record of 64-10 during his time at Niceville, including two Final Four appearances over the span of six seasons. 

Grant Thompson steps down as head football coach at Niceville (Florida) after six seasons

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

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Andy Villamarzo
ANDY VILLAMARZO

Andy Villamarzo has been a sports writer in the Tampa Bay (FL) Area since 2007, writing for publications such as Tampa Bay Times, The Tampa Tribune, The Suncoast News, Tampa Beacon, Hernando Sun to name a few. Andy resides out of the Tarpon Springs, FL area and started as a writer with SB Live Sports in the summer of 2022 covering the Tampa Bay Area. He has quickly become one of Florida's foremost authorities on high school sports, appearing frequently on podcasts, radio programs and digital broadcasts as an expert on team rankings, recruiting and much more.

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