Laos Books

An old Cougar couldn’t pass up the chance to become the newest leader of the Vikings.

Tennessee High announced the hiring of Shane Boggs late Monday night as its first new head football coach in 10 years, luring the 1990 Sullivan Central graduate back to Northeast Tennessee after a 14-year coaching journey that took him around the Southeast.

Boggs said departing his most recent job leading the Taylor County program was a difficult decision.

“I definitely was not looking to leave,” he said by phone Tuesday from Florida. “Ultimately it came down to the fact [Tennessee High] was a dream job.”

As he wraps up things in Florida during a dead period for Tennessee high school sports that lasts until July 11, Boggs said he hoped to begin Tuesday making contacts with the coaching staff of his predecessor Greg Stubbs, who won 94 games during his 10 years leading the Vikings.

Boggs, who plans to bring a spread-gun offense with him to Bristol, said he’ll lean on Stubbs’ assistants in preparing for the rapidly approaching 2011 season.

“My goal is to keep every one of them,” Boggs said. “My hope is they will embrace my philosophy and my vision.”

“Tennessee High has had great success for a long, long time,” Boggs added. “One of those reasons has been the depth of quality coaches.”

Stubbs resigned on May 23 and the search for his replacement ended up taking more than a month to complete.

Despite the length of the process, Tennessee High athletic director Paul Pendleton said that Boggs was the school system’s top choice for the job.

“It’s always a tough decision when you’re hiring people,” Pendleton said. “We had some quality candidates for the position. We just felt like it was best to take our time and make the right choice.”

While the nine finalists for the job included four internal candidates off Stubbs’ successful staff, Pendleton said he’s confident that Boggs will prove to be the best fit for the future without sweeping aside the past.

“I think Coach Boggs is going to come in and he’s going to work with our current staff and I think he’ll do a wonderful job,” Pendleton said.

“Tennessee High football has had a great tradition and we just feel like it’s going to continue under his leadership and guidance, just keep the Viking ship sailing.”

For his part, Boggs said the pressure of following Stubbs’ stellar tenure – which included a playoff appearance each season – is a better burden to have than dragging a struggling program up from the depths.

“What I wouldn’t want to be in is the situation where there were no expectations, but there weren’t any resources or community support,” he said.

During his time away from the area, which included assistant coaching stints at Knoxville West and North Florida Christian School in Tallahassee before he got his first head coaching job at Brookwood School in Georgia in 2003, Boggs said he kept close tabs on the high school football scene in Northeast Tennessee, checking area scores each Friday night.

Although he ended up graduating from Florida State University, Boggs also took classes at King College after the conclusion of his high school football career as a running back and safety. He said he still has numerous ties to the Bristol area.

“My friends and family are up there, my wife and I met at King College – we know the area,” Boggs said. “… I think [Tennessee High] is one of the best high schools in the Southeast.”

And Pendleton thinks the Vikings have nabbed one of the top high school football coaches around.

“He’s a quality person that fits our philosophy,” Pendleton said. “He fits what we’re looking for.”