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Chandler Tygard named new football coach at Blackman




Tygard named new football coach at Blackman

Tygard named new football coach at Blackman

Chandler Tygard was named the sixth head football coach in Blackman High School history on Wednesday.

Tygard comes from North Jackson High School, a storied program in Alabama where he was the head coach for two years. He has coached at many levels, including middle school, high school, college and the Canadian Football League.

He also has worked with Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin, former Louisiana Tech and Tennessee coach Derek Dooley and former Ravenwood High School coach Matt Daniels.

“I have known the Blackman program for a long time as I grew up with (former Blaze pitcher and current Los Angeles Dodgers hurler) David Price,” Tygard said. “I want the ‘B’ logo to be recognized around the state and the southeast.

“This has been 17 years in the making for me and my family. We have moved eight times in the past 10 years. When Blackman calls, you listen, and it is the most extensive coaching search I have ever seen.”

Blackman had a pool of several quality candidates for the job, which was narrowed down to 13 candidates before Tygard was selected. He replaces Kit Hartsfield, who recently resigned to take the head coaching job at Mt. Pleasant.

“We were looking for the best coach we could find and he rose to the top,” Blackman athletic director Scott Lawless said. “He has the experience, knowledge and is very innovative.”

Blackman principal Dr. Leisa Justus added: “We had some quality candidates and looked at some very good resumes, but Coach Tygard had a plan for our program. His plan was very detailed. It was 60 pages and he dotted every ‘I’ and crossed every ‘T.’ He has a great set of skills and runs a high-paced offense and defense that I think kids will enjoy playing. We want this to be a long-term guy for us.”

Tygard said he looks forward to playing against the top teams in the state, including region foe and defending state champion Oakland High School.

“I have known (Oakland) coach (Kevin) Creasy and respect him very much,” he said. “I want to play quality teams. I will schedule hard. You want to play the real competitive teams,” he said.

In one season, his teams recovered 11 onside kicks and four in one game. The 22nd season of Blaze football will begin on Aug. 20 at “The Inferno” against the Brentwood Bruins. Their region opener will be on Sept. 4 against Riverdale in the “Backyard Brawl.”

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