Turpin names new head football coach
ANDERSON TWP. - The Forest Hills School District Board of Education unanimously approved Kent McCullough as the new head football coach at Turpin High School Monday night.
McCullough replaces Rob Stoll, the winningest coach in program history, who stepped down last fall after going 122-48 with nine playoff appearances in 15 seasons with the Spartans.
"They're such a fundamentally sound program and Rob Stoll did a fantastic job there," said McCullough. "I know those are some big shoes to fill in that capacity, but just the student body, the academics, and the facilities over there made it such an appealing job."
Originally from Pittsburgh, McCullough played college football at Miami University and spent the last six seasons as head coach at Harrison, where he led the Wildcats to the playoffs in four seasons.
Oddly enough, this past fall, McCullough's final game coaching for Harrison was at Turpin, a 40-14 first-round playoff loss to the Spartans.
"And what's crazy is you can't say too many head coaches finished their season on the same field they're gonna start it at, just on different sidelines," McCullough said. "We got knocked out of the playoffs by Turpin last year and I got to see what Turpin was all about."
McCullough said Turpin has a great combination of athletic and academic standards. Additionally, Turpin's coming off a season in which all three levels of its program went undefeated in the regular season. The Spartans have also won at least a share of the Eastern Cincinnati Conference title each of the last two seasons, going a combined 21-3.
"It's a new challenge and I'm excited to start working with the kids and get over there and get them ready for the 2017 season," he said.
McCullough will also teach at Turpin, something he said he feels is extremely important for building and sustaining relationships.
"That was the one thing talking to the administration there from day one, they know the importance of being in the building and being with the kids," said McCullough. "I'm all about building relationships with the kids and it's hard to do that when you're not in the building."
Harrison released a statement Tuesday saying McCullough served with distinction on and off the field.
“More important than his football record, coach McCullough stressed academics with his players,” said John C. Hamstra, superintendent of the Southwest Local School District. McCullough’s student-athletes achieved a 3.09 team GPA during the first quarter of the current school year.
“Obviously, this is a big loss for Southwest, but we will look to move forward with a new coach at the helm and build on the successes coach McCullough, his staff and our athletes have established during the last six years,” Hamstra said. “We are extremely proud of the achievements under coach McCullough’s tenure.”
Harrison athletic director Mark Meibers said, “Kent has done an unbelievable job laying the foundation for our football program and building kids both academically and athletically. His dedication to Harrison will be missed. We wish him and his family the best of luck on the next step of his career.”
Per the statement, Harrison hopes to have the Southwest Board of Education appoint a coach at its March 16 meeting. Applicants can email a letter of interest, resume and at least five professional references (with contact info) to Meibers (mark.meibers@southwestschools.org). A teaching position will be available. Deadline to apply is March 7.