Preston tabbed as PV interim
- Updated: January 23, 2015
Offensive coordinator to handle day-to-day duties as Raiders search for new coach
By Al Muskewitz
East Alabama Sports Today
ALEXANDRIA – Offensive coordinator Ronnie Preston has been named interim head coach as Pleasant Valley officials move to find a permanent replacement for football coach Jeff Davis.
Davis’ resignation, first reported by East Alabama Sports Today last week, was formally accepted by the Calhoun County Board of Education at its meeting here Thursday. PV principal Mark Proper confirmed Preston, the school’s basketball coach and assistant head football coach, would be the interim coach.
There was no immediate timeline for hiring the new coach, although Proper said he’d like to have it settled before the end of the spring.
“We’re going to try to find the best person, the best fit, for our needs,” Proper said. “Somebody who believes in the sense of community; this community is important to the school. I feel like our community and our kids are an unbelievable draw to this school.”
The Raiders will are scheduled to play Saks in the Calhoun County Spring Jam in May. In the meantime, it is Preston’s plan to keep it in the road.
“I’m just handling the day-to-day operations,” he said. “I don’t want (the players) to worry about any of the other stuff; we’re going to continue on with our workout program. We’re going to approach it just like we’re getting ready for the next football season. I want them to be focused on getting ready for the next football season.”
He declined to say if he would be a candidate for the job. All of his football coaching experience has been as a member of Davis’ staff.
Davis was the longest tenured public school football coach in the county – and third overall — when he stepped down, citing the upcoming arrivals of two grandchildren and other family considerations.
He was 35-68 in his 10 seasons and took the Raiders to the playoffs three times, which was two more than they had been in the 23 years before his arrival. His teams were the most prolific offensively in school history, averaging 209 points over the last eight seasons. The 2007 team scored a school-record 279 points.
“I just respect everything he’s done and what he’s done to put this program on the map,” Proper said. “He loves this community and that was a big factor in this team winning.”
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