Gordon Central hires former Collins Hill head coach Gregory

Lenny Gregory, who led Collins Hill to a Class 7A football championship in 2021, was announced as Gordon Central’s coach Thursday morning.

Gregory resigned at Collins Hill in December, citing philosophical differences with the administration, and now will take over a Class 3A program in northwest Georgia coming off consecutive 0-10 seasons.

“I’ve never coached or lived in a small town, and I’ve always wanted to do that,” Gregory said. “My wife and I are looking for a bit of a change and wanted to go to a beautiful part of the state. I’ll try to use the blueprint I’ve used at my last two schools and build a championship program.”

Gregory was Collins Hill’s coach from 2017 through last season. Led by all-state players Travis Hunter and Sam Horn, the Eagles were 7A runners-up in 2020 and champions with in 2021. The 2022 team was 4-6.

Gregory was Centennial’s coach in 2015 and 2014 and was on Grayson’s staff prior, including during the 2011 state-championship season.

Gordon Central for decades has played in the shadow of state power Calhoun, a city school. The Warriors’ last winning season came in 2012. They’ve had four winless seasons since.

“The first thing we have to do is get the kids excited about the weight room and introduce my strength-and-conditioning program and get kids to develop a belief system,” Gregory said. “A lot of times it’s not ability or what they can do. It’s what they’re willing to do. I’ve been able to do that in both programs [Collins Hill and Centennial], take kids to a level they didn’t think they could go.”

Click here for a complete list of head coaching openings.