Mt. Airy, GA – Habersham Central High School head football coach Michael Pollock says he will coach again somewhere after resigning his position with the Raiders on Thursday. Pollock says he is actively pursuing other coaching jobs outside of Habersham County. “I’m a football coach. I’ve been doing this for 20 something years. I’m going to be coaching somewhere next year – that’s the plan and the goal.” In the interim, Pollock says he’ll continue to teach at Habersham Central. His teaching contract runs through May 27, 2015, but Pollock is leaving the door open for the possibility of an early exit. He says he’s got some leads on available coaching jobs and says more opportunities should open up when playoff season ends. “I’m looking at each job individually to see if it will be a good fit for me.”
Pollock turned in his letter of resignation to HCHS Athletic Director Geep Cunningham on Nov. 13.
Pollock insists he was not pushed out as HCHS head football coach. He says he decided to leave for personal reasons. “It was no one thing that prompted it (his decision to leave). It was just a family decision that we made. We felt it was time.” Pollock and his wife Shannon have five children. “We’ve got children growing up and moving around and we just needed to step back at this time and try to see what the future may hold on a different path.”
It’s been a tough two years for Coach Pollock. He entered the job at HCHS under a cloud of scrutiny after being fired from his coaching job at Americus-Sumter High School in south Georgia and immediately took on the challenge of leading the Raiders through the highly-competitive Region 6A football schedule. The Raiders posted back to back losing seasons, winning just once in the second to last game of this season. “It’s been tough and it didn’t move as fast as we all would have liked but there’s definitely a foundation for a new coach to come in and build on and continue what we started,” Pollock says.
The former UGA walk-on came in with great promise. He joined Raider Nation with a 36-17 overall record and 16 state playoff appearances under his belt. Before coming to Central Pollock had never posted a losing record. He says the highlight of his time as the Raiders’ head football coach came when the team broke it’s 21-game losing streak on Oct. 31 in a region game against North Forsyth in front of a hometown crowd.
“It was nice to break through and get that victory after we had struggled so long. We were light years ahead of where we were when I got here,” he says of the team and its performance that night. “They hung in with the coaches and the coaches hung in with them.”
Hanging in with his former players is something Pollock says he intends to do. “We’re going to continue to work hard in the weight room preparing for next year. I’m going to work with the seniors and others in the recruiting process, making phone calls and writing letters.” He adds, “During this transition it’s vital we continue to work hard so that when the new coach comes in he has a team ready to go to the next season.”
“For fans, football is a game but for coaches it’s about relationships. We’re tyring to grow young men. I’ve built relationships. Just because you change the colors of your team doesn’t mean you change your relationships.” ~ Coach Michael Pollock
Pollock says he’s grateful for the two years he spent leading the Raider football program. “You couldn’t ask for better fans. I’m grateful to the fans and, though the result wasn’t what we always wanted, people cared about and loved the Raiders.” He adds, “There is nothing but great things I can say about HCHS and Habersham County. People have been great to me. The school system has been great to me.” Pollock says the coaching profession is full of constant change. “Just because you’re leaving doesn’t mean you’re upset or mad about anything, it’s just time for the next step and that’s where I’m at right now.”
Pollock’s resignation letter will be presented to the Habersham County School Board during its next meeting on Monday, Nov. 17.
