By: Will Jacobs
The DeKalb County Board of Education officially named Heath Vincent as the new head football coach for the Valley Head Tigers. Vincent comes from Fort Payne High School where he was the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach.
Vincent spent the previous nine years at Fort Payne, and he has twenty years of coaching experience under his belt. Vincent will also be teaching social sciences at Valley Head.
Heath began his coaching career at Section High School where he coached under coach Paul Ellis for three years. He then made trips to Ashville, Fort Payne, Dade County, Georgia, Oak Mountain, and Buckhorn before finally returning to Fort Payne.
In seven of his nine years at Fort Payne, Vincent’s defense averaged allowing less than twenty points per game.
Valley Head has missed the playoffs in seven of the last ten years and has charted only one winning season in that time span.
Coach Vincent will begin his career with the Valley Head Tigers on August 31st against the Alabama School for the Deaf in Talladega. The Tigers’ home opener will come on September 7th against Decatur Heritage Christian.
Decatur Heritage is one of three new regional opponents for Valley Head for at least the next two seasons after the AHSAA realignment.
The Tigers keep past rivals, Coosa Christian, Gaylesville, and Woodville. They added Decatur Heritage Christian, Falkville, and R.A. Hubbard to the new 1A Region 7.
While Vincent has been on Fort Payne’s sidelines for almost the last decade, he considers Valley Head like a second home.
“They’ve got a great community here. Fort Payne is home to me, but Valley Head is too since I’ve lived there for 13 years,” Vincent said. “I’ve followed that program and know many people in that community. I know how that area comes together to support the school system and their athletics, and that level of support is very important to me. I’m looking forward to getting in there and building relationships with the community, the parents, and especially the kids.”
DeKalb County Schools Superintendent Jason Barnett also expressed his pleasure with the hiring of Vincent.
“We are very excited to have coach Vincent as our new football coach at Valley Head,” Barnett said. “He brings a lot of great experiences with him working as an assistant coach under the guidance of some of the best football coaches in north Alabama. Coach Vincent came highly recommended as a coach, teacher, and most importantly as a great man. I believe he will do an outstanding job with Valley Head’s football program, and I look forward to watching his team compete this upcoming season.”
Valley Head’s Principal, Heath Kirby, is also excited about Vincent being named head coach.
“We’re ecstatic about it,” said Kirby. “He is a great person and a great teacher. He is very well respected amongst his players, coaches, and the Fort Payne community. I have known Heath for a long time, and to me it was a no-brainer to get a coach and teacher with his level of quality.”