BENNETTSVILLE—The Marlboro County School District announced the new head football coach and athletic director at Monday’s board meeting.
Cory Johnson, who was head coach of Clinton (NC)High School, was named the Marlboro County Bulldogs head coach and will start on July 1, according to MCSD Superintendent Helena Tillar. Johnson was previously the defensive coordinator at Scotland High School in Laurinburg, NC, before becoming the head coach in Clinton.
According to HighschoolOT.com, Johnson led Clinton to a 15-1 record last fall. The team played in the N.C. School Athletic Association’s 2A championship last year. Johnson had been the head coach at Clinton since 2018, where he amassed an overall record of 61-12. He started his coaching career at 22 when he graduated from Catawba College in Salisbury, N.C. — where he played linebacker for the school.
“I spent six years there and before that, I spent five years at Scotland High School,” he said. Johnson said he took the job in Marlboro County because of the school’s tradition.
“I know they take football extra serious here,” he said. “I love this area of football, I started off in Scotland County, so I know about the battle of the border, I knew about this area and I just wanted to get back to this area.”
Johnson is taking over a team that finished with a 3-7 record last season. “I think that we need to first build relationships with the kids and then after we build relationships with the kids, we need to work in steps on becoming a true team. We need to insert core values, effort, attitude, and toughness to the kids and they can carry those values way beyond football. Once we do that and everyone gets on the same page and we’re all on the same mission we’ll start putting Ws together on the daily.”
Johnson said it isn’t just about next football season, he wants to make sure the athletes are prepared holistically.
“When we become better human beings, the winning will take care of itself,” he said. Johnson knows how seriously the community takes football and he feels he’s a good match for the program because he feels the same way.
“I take it very seriously, it is my ministry, it’s how I give back to the earth. We are going to build champions in life daily.”
Johnson brings a new staff to lead the Bulldogs, a former Scotland standout Amir McNeill will coach the cornerbacks for Marlboro, according to HighschoolOT.com. McNeil played at NC A&T University and was coaching linebackers at South Carolina State last year. The same goes for former Scotland defensive lineman Karfa Kaba, who will coach his position at Marlboro. Kaba played at both NC Central and NC A&T. The website also reported, Ryan Hunt, who was on Johnson’s staff at Clinton as the defensive coordinator, will be the offensive line coach and recruiting coordinator. Dennis McFatten was hired as the co-defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach after serving as the head coach at Robeson County’s Lumberton High School last season. Former Pine Forest athletic director and administrator Lonnie Cox will be a teacher and wide receivers coach at Marlboro. Cox previously served as the head coach at Union Pines High School in Moore County and Fairmont High School in Robeson County. Clinton strength and conditioning coach Dion Norwood was hired to coach running backs at Marlboro.
Tillar said all of the new coaches are also certified teachers and will be teaching classes at the high school as well as coaching. This is part of the district’s effort to end online classes and return to 100 % face-to-face learning.
“We have biology, we have math teachers and those are positions that we’ve had vacant here at the high school. It’s a win-win,” she said.
Matt Quinn was named as the athletic director. Quinn has coached football at North Augusta High School, and Westwood High School in Blythewood and was named Region 4-AAAA Coach of the Year in 2021. Tillar said it’s important to have an AD that works across the district. “It’s hard for you to coach and do all of that,” she said. “It’s a lot of things we need to revamp with athletics.”
Quinn said he’s been working in high school sports for 14 years. “I’ve been an assistant coach in multiple sports.”
He said that he’s bringing a positive atmosphere and positive relationships to the athletic program in the county.
“Creating opportunities for our student-athletes in every single sport, to exceed expectations on and off the field. Putting as many of our student-athletes into college athletics as possible, SAT, ACT prep. Anything we can do to push them to the next level we’re going to do it,” Quinn said.
Tillar said former football head coach and athletic director Quin McCollum, has been promoted to an administrative position in the district.
She said McCollum has been a certified administrator. “One of the things that he mentioned to me when I first got here is that he was certified in administration and he really wanted to make that step toward becoming an administrator. So after he said that, and this opportunity (came about) I talked with him and I feel like that was the best thing. For him, this is home and he works well with our kids — and that’s a small group of kids. This way he will be working with all of our kids. And I’m excited for him. He has other aspirations. One responsibility I have as superintendent is the folks that are a part of my staff, I need to know their career goals and where they want to be in the next five, 10, 15 years. And if there is an opportunity to make that happen. And that’s what we tried to do is create a win-win,” Tillar said.