Clarke County has a new head Football Coach and it’s a familiar face around the Berryville, VA school.
Athletic Director and former defensive coordinator Casey Childs will be the Head Coach going forward for the Eagles, a program out of the Bull Run District that has enjoyed plenty of success.
“I’ve been the AD and defensive coordinator here for almost 13 years,” Childs said.
Childs becomes the 16th Head Coach in school history as he takes over for Chris Parker, who had been at the helm since 2000. While the school has not won a state title, they have made the playoffs each year since 2006 and went to the state title game in Class 2 during the 2015 campaign under Parker.
“I give a lot of credit obviously to Coach Parker. He’s always allowed the staff to have a lot of leeway and a lot of say in how our program has been handled,” Childs exclaimed. “We’ve been together as a staff for 13 years other than two guys that were former players for us, so we have a lot of continuity on our staff which has helped us.”
With being the AD and now Head Football coach, a lot is going to be on Childs’ plate. Yet, Parker won’t be too far away from the program.
“It’s going to be great. I had Coach Parker’s blessing from the beginning even to apply for the job,” Childs said. “I know he will still be around the building since he will still be a teacher next year. We’re excited about it. I reached out to all the kids and parents by email and have gotten a lot of positive comments.”
His duties as an AD have been made tougher by COVID-19, making his decision to take this job even more interesting. As we head towards summer and a decision on fall sports, Childs is sure to have a few restless nights.
“It’s been rough. I’ve got a senior son, who was our starting quarterback for the past three years,” Childs commented. “So I’ve got it on different ends; as a parent, and as an Athletic Director. It’s hard to find words because all of our kids put so much time in and all of our coaches put so much time and effort into their particular sports. For it to be shut down is very difficult.”
There's also great anticipation to see how his son wraps up his career in a Clarke County uniform from the sidelines.
“As a parent, you’ve got a kid who has been a three-sport athlete for four years and it’s been very difficult to hold him (Colby Childs) back,” Childs said.
Colby is the school record holder for single-game, and single-season passing yards, as well as career passing records, all of which he hit during the 2019 season.
“It’s been great. Coach Parker coached the quarterbacks and was the offensive coordinator,” Childs said. “To be honest with you, I stayed away from him during practices and games and treated him like every other player. I tried not to overstep because just like with a lot of kids when they have their dad on the staff, they have a hard time seeing you as a coach because they only see you as a dad. I tried to, for the most part, stay away and just let him be an athlete. I couldn’t have asked for a better situation with how Coach Parker handled him.”
The list of accolades since Childs joined the staff is long, with nine conference titles, a regional title, and a State Championship game berth under the staff the last 13 seasons. But the credit goes to the community, Childs indicated.
"They really understand the importance of athletics," he noted. "There is a lot of added pressure to continue to do this. We have been one of the better programs in our area."
