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MERRY HILL – Jerry Ford and Brad Brown have been hired as football coaches at Lawrence Academy.

“We are fortunate in that we have brought onboard two very experienced and knowledgeable football coaches,” said Katrina Ford, Head of School at Lawrence Academy. Ford. “Coach Ford and Coach Brown have excellent backgrounds in education and athletics, and they will have an immediate and positive effect on the Lawrence Academy community.”

Jerry Ford is the new Head Coach of the varsity football team. Coach Ford inherits the position from Coach Lee Hoffman who will continue to coach the JV Football team and serve as the school’s Director of Athletics, among other duties.

Coach Ford comes to Lawrence with extensive experience in coaching football in the independent leagues in Georgia. Most recently, he served as the Varsity Assistant Head Coach at Harvester Christian in Douglasville, GA. In that position, Coach Ford served as the Defensive Coordinator.

Prior to his stint at Harvester, Coach Ford served as the Strength and Conditioning Coach and Defensive Coach at Arlington Christian in Fairburn, GA.

With a background playing on both sides of the ball, Coach Ford is comfortable moving into the head coach position at Lawrence and looks forward to the upcoming season.

“We have a great group of guys that have been working hard despite the restrictions placed on us due to COVID-19 issues,” Coach Ford stated. “With all the restrictions in place, we were concerned about how the players would respond. But, their work ethic has been exceptional. These fine young men are creating memories that will be with them a long time, and I know their parents are proud of them. I’m just happy that the guys get to play [despite the COVID-19 restrictions that are in place in many states].”

Brown is the new Assistant Head Coach of the varsity football team. Coach Brown is an alumnus of Lawrence Academy from where he graduated in 1984. He then moved to East Carolina University where he played football under head coaches Ed Emory and Art Baker.

Following his graduation from ECU, Coach Brown served as an assistant coach for the jayvee and varsity football teams at Washington High School (Washington, NC).

Coach Brown is a student of the game and is highly accomplished in strength training. While at ECU, Brown played both center and tackle on the offensive line. He will bring all that knowledge and experience to his role coaching the offensive and defensive linemen for the Warriors.

“I’m really excited to be coaching football again. And, while we are a much smaller school than Washington, it all comes down to the same things: blocking, tackling, running, passing, and catching. We have a core group of players who are very capable and could play at any school in the area, Brown remarked. “Coach Ford and I are really working to build the program up, and we hope other young men will see what we are doing and come join us. We think we have the foundation to be a good football team.”

Lawrence Academy is scheduled to open it 2020 football season on Friday, Sept. 25 with a 4 p.m. game at Pungo Christian Academy in Belhaven. Their first home game (7 p.m. kickoff) is slated for Friday, Oct. 9 against Wayne Christian.

The North Carolina Association of Independent Schools (NCISAA) has approved a fall schedule for all sports, but is currently prohibiting spectators. The school is currently working with Magic 95.9 in Plymouth to broadcast the games live via radio and the web.