Football coach proud to be back at Carroll
Courtesy of The Greenwood Commonwealth
The Carroll Academy athletic teams have many returning coaches this year and two new ones.
Coach Roger Gordon returns as head football coach. Gordon is a graduate of the University of Mississippi, which he attended on a football scholarship. He has coached at CA in the past in a number of areas - high school boys basketball, junior high boys and girls basketball, head junior high football and assistant high school football coach, and all levels of track.
"It's a great honor to be asked to come back here and coach again," he said. "This school is very sentimental to me. The football field is named after my brother, who coached and was headmaster here. A lot of these young men that I'll coach are children of players that I coached when I was here before."
Assisting Gordon will be Joe Taylor and Sim Shanks, a group Gordon is excited about.
"I hope that with the help of Coach Taylor and Coach Shanks we can return Carroll Academy football to the place it was years ago," he said.
Taylor comes to CA from Humphreys Academy, where he was head boys basketball coach and assistant in football and baseball for six years.
He played baseball at Mississippi Delta Community College from 1999 to 2001 and then continued his education at Delta State University, graduating in 2004.
Taylor and his wife have a 2-year-old son and live in Greenwood. He will teach physical education and health and will assist in boys basketball as well as football.
"I'm excited to be a part of Carroll Academy and am looking forward to the upcoming year," he said.
Shanks is returning to CA for his seventh year, and this year he adds athletic director to his responsibilities. He is head baseball coach and assists in football.
Shanks is a graduate of Pensacola Junior College and the University of Mississippi, majoring in history. At Carroll he teaches geography and U.S. history. He and his wife, Missy, have a daughter, 18 months.
Before coming to CA, Shanks was assistant baseball coach at Mississippi Valley State University for two years.
In addition to his headmaster duties, Steve Flemming will continue to coach boys basketball, as he has done at CA for five years. Flemming has also been head coach for boys track and assisted in football, was head coach for one year and has been athletic director and principal for the past four years.
Coach Brenda Corley will start her eighth year at CA. She begins her second year as head junior high school girls basketball coach, and is head coach for junior high and high school track, which she has done for eight years. She teaches seventh- and eighth-grade science and biology.
She is a graduate of Mississippi State University with a bachelor's degree in physical education and health. At MSU she was on a scholarship for track and cross-country, which she ran for the four years she was there.
Corley and her husband, Jim, have two daughters, Brianna, 14, and Memrie, 16.
David Arrington starts his second year as high school girls basketball coach. He also teaches math at CA. He is a graduate of Ole Miss with a major in math, and lacks a thesis to complete a master's degree in anthropology.
Arrington has coached and taught at Calhoun, Kirk, and Marshall academies, as well as the Oxford University School. He has coached basketball, baseball, track, softball and tennis.
Rusty Miller starts his seventh year as head softball coach. Before coming to CA he coached softball at Winona Christian Academy.
He is a graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi in athletic administration and coaching. He is ranch manager at Evans Angus Ranch in Vaiden.
Payge Thornton assists in softball and also coaches junior high cheerleaders and teaches the 3K class. Amanda Neal coaches high school cheerleaders and will teach the 4K class.
Jessica Brewer coaches the junior high and high school dancing teams.
Courtesy of The Greenwood Commonwealth
The Carroll Academy athletic teams have many returning coaches this year and two new ones.
Coach Roger Gordon returns as head football coach. Gordon is a graduate of the University of Mississippi, which he attended on a football scholarship. He has coached at CA in the past in a number of areas - high school boys basketball, junior high boys and girls basketball, head junior high football and assistant high school football coach, and all levels of track.
"It's a great honor to be asked to come back here and coach again," he said. "This school is very sentimental to me. The football field is named after my brother, who coached and was headmaster here. A lot of these young men that I'll coach are children of players that I coached when I was here before."
Assisting Gordon will be Joe Taylor and Sim Shanks, a group Gordon is excited about.
"I hope that with the help of Coach Taylor and Coach Shanks we can return Carroll Academy football to the place it was years ago," he said.
Taylor comes to CA from Humphreys Academy, where he was head boys basketball coach and assistant in football and baseball for six years.
He played baseball at Mississippi Delta Community College from 1999 to 2001 and then continued his education at Delta State University, graduating in 2004.
Taylor and his wife have a 2-year-old son and live in Greenwood. He will teach physical education and health and will assist in boys basketball as well as football.
"I'm excited to be a part of Carroll Academy and am looking forward to the upcoming year," he said.
Shanks is returning to CA for his seventh year, and this year he adds athletic director to his responsibilities. He is head baseball coach and assists in football.
Shanks is a graduate of Pensacola Junior College and the University of Mississippi, majoring in history. At Carroll he teaches geography and U.S. history. He and his wife, Missy, have a daughter, 18 months.
Before coming to CA, Shanks was assistant baseball coach at Mississippi Valley State University for two years.
In addition to his headmaster duties, Steve Flemming will continue to coach boys basketball, as he has done at CA for five years. Flemming has also been head coach for boys track and assisted in football, was head coach for one year and has been athletic director and principal for the past four years.
Coach Brenda Corley will start her eighth year at CA. She begins her second year as head junior high school girls basketball coach, and is head coach for junior high and high school track, which she has done for eight years. She teaches seventh- and eighth-grade science and biology.
She is a graduate of Mississippi State University with a bachelor's degree in physical education and health. At MSU she was on a scholarship for track and cross-country, which she ran for the four years she was there.
Corley and her husband, Jim, have two daughters, Brianna, 14, and Memrie, 16.
David Arrington starts his second year as high school girls basketball coach. He also teaches math at CA. He is a graduate of Ole Miss with a major in math, and lacks a thesis to complete a master's degree in anthropology.
Arrington has coached and taught at Calhoun, Kirk, and Marshall academies, as well as the Oxford University School. He has coached basketball, baseball, track, softball and tennis.
Rusty Miller starts his seventh year as head softball coach. Before coming to CA he coached softball at Winona Christian Academy.
He is a graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi in athletic administration and coaching. He is ranch manager at Evans Angus Ranch in Vaiden.
Payge Thornton assists in softball and also coaches junior high cheerleaders and teaches the 3K class. Amanda Neal coaches high school cheerleaders and will teach the 4K class.
Jessica Brewer coaches the junior high and high school dancing teams.
