Westview names Matt McConnell new football coach

To find the new football coach at Westview high school, the administration dipped into the Chargers’ past. On Monday, Westview announced Matt McConnell as the new football coach.

“We had several good applicants for this job, including some who had been here previously,” Westview principal Brian Allen said. “It was a hard decision for me, (athletic director) Coach (Brian) Haskins and (assistant principal) Delana Smith. Knowing Coach McConnell with his past and offensive mind, those were the reasons we went down this path. I want to thank Coach (Jarod) Neal and the work that he put into the program.”

McConnell returns as head coach after he coached the Chargers in 2019, where he led them to the playoffs with a 6-5 record. He replaces Jarod Neal, who resigned earlier this month.

“The tradition that Westview has in its football program and the school because it is an awesome school to be at,” McConnell said when asked about why he chose to return to Westview. “The community supports their kids in the school, sports and really everything. It is exciting to have the opportunity to come back.”

McConnell has been in Camden the past four seasons. He has been a football coach for 21 years with 10 seasons as a head coach.

Over the past four seasons at Camden, he has a 12-30 record with two playoff appearances. He has a 68-48 record with eight playoff appearances in 10 years.

“I am excited right now to get in the weight room and get to know the kids,” McConnell said. “I am excited to come in and work for Coach Allen, Coach Haskins and Mr. Smith and work a long side of them.”

He has also been a head coach at Waverly, where he led the Tigers to two semifinal appearances and a quarterfinal appearance.

Westview also announced that Chris Coleman is returning as an assistant coach. Coleman played at UT Martin for four-and-a-half seasons, and he was an assistant coach under Neal during the 2021 Class 2A state championship team.

Westview is coming off a 7-5 season in 2023 with an appearance in the second round of the Class 3A state playoffs. And there is much excitement around he Westview football program as Graham Simpson, younger brother of Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson, will be a freshman this fall.

“I want to get our goals and the things that are important to us installed,” McConnell said about what he wants accomplish before summer workouts. “It is a year round thing. You have to get them accustomed to that now, so they know what we are asking them to do. I know we have a bunch of kids that play multiple sports, and I am glad because I believe kids should play as many sports as they can. So we will have some kids at times, and then we will all be back to together over the summer.”