Jamey Dubose selected as new Charles Henderson head football coach

It didn’t take Jamey Dubose long to lay out his plans for the future of Charles Henderson athletics.

“We are going to dominate the south,” Dubose said. “If we dominate the south, we will beat the north.”

The Troy City Schools board unanimously voted to hire Dubose as the next head football coach and athletic director at Charles Henderson High School Thursday night at a special called meeting.

Dubose’s hiring brings the seven-week coaching search to an end, and he is very excited about the direction and future of the program.

“We are not going to win because Jamey Dubose came here,” he said. “We are going to win because of the work ethic of the kids. The ultimate goal is to win a state championship, and down from there you want to win your region and have some home playoff games. We will have some more team goals when we can sit down and talk. But we are going to keep building on the success.”

Dubose has been one of Alabama’s most successful coaches during the past decade, since becoming a head coach for the first time in 2002 at Susan Moore High School in Blountsville. Dubose served as offensive coordinator and later head coach at Prattville High School. He captured three state championships, two as a head coach, with the Lions.

Dubose spent the last two seasons as head coach at Florence High School, and guided the Falcons to the quarterfinals of the Alabama High School Athletic Association playoffs in 2013.

He said the decision to leave Florence was difficult, and as recent as Monday stated he was staying, but made the decision based on one thing.

“(We) sat down and made a decision based on family,” said Dubose. “I loved Florence. It is a great town. They treated my great, and they have really great kids. Sometimes you just have to take a step back, and rethink things. That is what the whole decision was about. We wanted to get our family back together. After we talked, this was the best thing for us.”

During the board meeting, Dubose addressed the more than 60 people on hand and gave them an insight as to what he expected of each and every player. Dubose said he “takes an interest in the student athlete,” and wanted to see them succeed on and off the field of play. “We’re going to build a family,” he said. “And, we’re building student athletes not just on the field but in the classroom.”

Board President Wally Lowery thinks the hire of Dubose was the perfect move for Charles Henderson.

“We hired the best football coach in the state of Alabama,” Lowery said during the meeting. “There is no doubt.”

Board member Mark Salmon said he was pleased with Dubose’s focus on the student athlete. “I’ve watched this decision and opportunity develop in recent weeks and one thing I’m comfortable with is (that) you’re a player’s coach and take a great interest in the student athlete,” Salmon told Dubose during the meeting.

The position at Charles Henderson became available in December 2013 when former head coach Mike Dean resigned 10 days after guiding the Trojans to a berth in the AHSAA 4A Championship game. Over the last two seasons, Charles Henderson has posted a 23-5 record, and Dubose wants to keep building on the recent success.

“We are going to dominate the south, because we are going to dominate the weight room,” Dubose said. “We are going to practice hard, and practice smart. The goal right now at Charles Henderson is not to just get in the playoffs, but to be in contention for state titles. There is excitement in the program, and we have to build on that. Everyone has a role to play.”

Dubose’s hire officially takes effect today, and he wants to get right to work. And he doesn’t just mean football.

“Troy is a situation that is not broke,” said Dubose. “It is a situation that we want to add a little more excitement to. I’m exited to go ahead and get on in there and get things going for the spring. We want to continue the winning process at all sports, not just football.”

The board also approved the hiring of Dubose’s wife, Tracey, as reading coach at Charles Henderson High School, during Monday’s meeting

“It’s exciting for us as we take the program to the next level,” said Lee Hicks, superintendent. “We want to welcome Coach Jamey Dubose and his wife, Tracey, to the Troy City Schools family.”