On Feb. 26, Coach Keith Etheredge was officially named the new head football coach of the Auburn High Tigers. A native of Leeds, Alabama, Keith Etheredge has coached almost every level in the AHSAA ranks. Ever since a young age, Coach Etheredge knew he wanted to be a coach.
“My coaches in high school are what made me want to become a coach,” Etheredge said. “My dad died before I was born, so my coaches were like father figures to me. When you think about coaching and why I started coaching, I got into it to grow young men and be an influence on them. I want to help them to become better people."
Etheredge said he hopes his coaching inspires his players to be better men. His team follows the motto ‘Faith, Family, and Football.'
Starting at his alma mater Leeds High School in 2006, Etheredge led the Greenwaves to four state championship Titles. Following his departure at Leeds, Etheredge went to Pell City and spent two seasons there.
In 2018, an opening at T. R. Miller High School became available, and Keith Etheredge felt called to Brewton, Alabama to take over the T. R. Miller Tigers. In his lone season at TRM, he took the TRM Tigers back to the playoffs.
In 2019, Coach Etheredge took over at 6A Oxford. In his first season, he took the Yellow Jackets to the state championship and defeated Spanish Fort to claim the school’s first State Title since 1996. In 2020, he led the Yellow Jackets to the Quarterfinals. Now, almost a month has passed and Etheredge is settling in to his new position.
“Everybody is super nice," Etheredge said. "Most people are willing to help. There is great leadership in the school system and in the City. Mayor Anders, our superintendent Dr. Herring, [Auburn High School principal] Dr. Pignato, and athletic director Norton have all been awesome since I’ve arrived here."
Etheredge appreciates the communication between the City and the school. He believes that proximity to Auburn University also helps the area's atmosphere.
"You get all the great things about high school, and get to be in a college town,” Etheredge said.
Auburn is not just getting Keith Etheredge, they are receiving the Etheredge family. No matter where Coach Etheredge goes, his family plays a vital part of anything he does, he said.
“Allison, my wife, will be teaching math at one of the schools in the system," Etheredge said. "McKenzie, my daughter, is an eighth grader right now, but will be in the ninth grade here. She is a three-sport athlete and she is pumped up and ready to go. Camden, my son, will be a senior next year, and he plays tight end and linebacker on the football team. Susie Nelson, my mom, will also be joining us here in Auburn. We are excited and cannot wait to get everybody here to start this journey."
Etheredge gets to coach his oldest son Camden during his senior year. Camden has followed and witnessed his father coach in many state championships, and now he gets to play for his dad.
“It is really special," Etheredge said. "Camden is a kid who has worked tremendously hard to get better and better at his craft, and he has done a great job at doing the little things right. He pushes himself and gets after it in the weight room."
Auburn High is the second largest school in the State. The Auburn High Tigers went to the 7A state championship in 2020 and lost to then-defending State Champion Thompson. As the 2021 season approaches, Etheredge said what happened in the past will have no bearing on the future of the Auburn High football program.
“My plans are to go 14-0 and win a state championship," Etheredge said. "That is what we want to do, and that will be our plan from the start. If we falter and lose a game, then our plans will be to go 13-1 and win a state championship. I have high expectations for us. We aren’t going to look at anything that happened in the past. We will push to the future."
Etheredge looks forward to coaching his team, with players such as Gordon Powell, Brad Harper, Drew Bobo and Davis Harsin.
"We just want to keep pushing to bring that blue map to Auburn High, because they have never won one in football,” Etheredge said.
After being hired, Coach Etheredge had the opportunity to meet the coaching staff.
“There are some great coaches on the staff,” Etheredge said. “You have the Assistant Coach of the Year, Scott Goolsby, he’s an unbelievable man. He’s just an overall high quality coach. Our Offensive Coordinator[Scott Clements], he will be leaving and taking the same position at Tuscaloosa County.
Etheredge said he will lose some staff that will follow Coach Winegarden, but that is to be expected. The head coach typically has other staff members that will follow them to a new school, he said.
"When a head coach leaves, they usually take guys they are comfortable with and want to keep in their program," Etheredge said. "We are going to fill those spots with quality guys, and some of my guys. I'm excited to get some of those guys here, because we are going to get the best coaches in the State for these players."
Spring training and practice for Auburn High will begin on April 26 and will conclude with a spring game against Eufaula on May 13 inside Duck Samford Stadium.
“Coach Rigby and I talked and we are going to crank it up with a game,” Etheredge said. “We are going to practice Monday through Thursday for three weeks, and I put those days in there just in case of bad weather. If not, we will cut some of those extra days."
Coach Etheredge is ready for Fall on The Plains, and he is ready for the students, fans, and the entire Auburn Community to come fill Duck Samford Stadium on Friday nights.
“It’s going to be a great football season,” Etheredge said. “It’s going to be exciting and a lot of new things going on this season. We will be coming out of the COVID pandemic, and hopefully we can pack Duck Samford Stadium. It is going to be a great atmosphere, and I am just excited to be the Head Coach at Auburn High."
Etheredge's new position at Auburn High will mark his first year in 7A football.
"I am just really looking forward to winning a State Championship, and maybe even one in Jordan-Hare," Etheredge said.
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Michael Floyd, junior in journalism, has been with The Plainsman since Spring 2021. He is a native of Brewton, Ala., an can be followed on Twitter here.
