VALDOSTA — John Thompson is leaving Valdosta High for the chance to be a head coach.
Thompson, Valdosta High’s special teams coach, has been named the new head coach at Berkmar High in Lilburn. It will be the first head coaching job for the 36-year old Thompson.
“I’m real excited about this opportunity, as excited as I was to come here to Valdosta in 2006,” Thompson said.
Thompson has spent the last two seasons as Valdosta High’s Director of Football Operations, special teams coach and strength and conditioning coach. He was also the Wildcats’ head track coach.
While excited about the chance to be a head coach for the first time, Thompson also says it will be hard to leave Valdosta.
“Every night, I thank the good Lord for the chance to coach at Valdosta High School,” Thompson said. “I wouldn’t trade the last two years at Valdosta for anything. I learned so much working with Coach (Rick) Tomberlin and this coaching staff.
“People outside of this community don’t understand just how much football means to the people of Valdosta. It is a big deal here, and I’ve been blessed to coach here the last two years.”
Last season, Valdosta went 9-3 and reached the second round of the Class AAAAA state playoffs. The Wildcats were ranked No. 10 in the final state poll.
Thompson’s biggest success at Valdosta, however, was in the weight room. The Wildcats won the state championship in weightlifting in 2007, and will try to defend that title later this month in Perry. In two seasons, Valdosta’s weightlifting program has broken six Bigger, Faster, Stronger national records.
Before coming to Valdosta, Thompson was an assistant coach at Gainesville High, his alma mater, where he helped the Red Elephants go 48-3 from 2002-05. Gainesville made it to the second round of the playoffs all four seasons he was there. The Red Elephants made it to the semifinals once and the quarterfinals another season. He was twice named the region’s Assistant Football Coach of the Year.
He also spent two seasons as a graduate assistant at the University of Georgia, where he had played from 1990-94.
Thompson was a standout at Gainesville from 1987-89 under the late Bobby Gruhn. He went on to be a long snapper at the University of Georgia.
“I have been so blessed in my career to have played and coached for Coach Gruhn, Coach Wayne Bradshaw (at East Hall), Coach (Mark) Richt (at Georgia) and Coach Tomberlin,” Thompson said. “I learned so much from each of them.”
Thompson learned a lot about Wildcat football from another one of his mentors, the late Don Golden. Golden was a star quarterback and defensive back for Valdosta teams that won the state championship in 1968 and the national championship in 1969, and later became the defensive coordinator at Gainesville.
“Don Golden was one of my coaches at Gainesville, and he told me how special football was at Valdosta,” Thompson said. “It was truly an honor to be able to walk the same sidelines that Coach Golden stood on, and that two men I have the utmost respect for, Coach (Wright) Bazemore and Coach (Nick) Hyder, stood on.”
Thompson inherits a Berkmar program that has experienced a turnaround recently. After going 18 years without making the playoffs, and having only three winning seasons from 1975-2003, the Patriots have made the postseason three of the past four years. In 2007, they went 6-4.
Thompson will replace Wendell Early, who went 23-19 in his final four years at the school, after an 0-10 first season. Early resigned on Jan. 31 to pursue other opportunities.
“Coach Early did a great job at Berkmar,” Thompson said. “He started building consistency and put together a good staff there. I want to continue building consistency there. We’re going to have to work, and show these kids that we care about the program, and care about them.
“It’s a tough region (8-AAAAA), like Valdosta’s region is. If you want to succeed there, you’ve got to have a work ethic. Like Coach Gruhn used to say, ‘You’ve got to believe to achieve.’”
Thompson says his offense at Berkmar will base out of the wing-T, but will also include some I-formation and shotgun sets, a lot like Valdosta runs. He plans to copy Wildcat defensive coordinator Jeff Arnette’s attacking 4-3 defense.
Thompson admits he plans to keep up with Valdosta, even as he moves on to another program. He says the opportunity to be a Wildcat is something that will always be special to him.
“I want to thank the people of Valdosta for all they’ve done for me,” Thompson said. “Valdosta has become like a second home to me. I won’t ever forget the people of Valdosta, Ga. and how well I was treated here. I learned so much from Coach Tomberlin. This was the best coaching staff I’ve ever been a part of.
“There will always be a little black-and-gold in me.”
Local Sports
Valdosta assistant John Thompson heading to Berkmar
Coach helped Wildcats win state in weightlifting in 2007
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