Justin Conyers has coached his final football game at Nansemond River High School in Suffolk. Earlier this week, Conyers decided to step down at the helm of the Warriors, who posted a record of 21-8 overall during his three seasons, the most recent being an unusual abbreviated campaign shifted from the fall to the spring due to the coronavirus pandemic.
"I just needed a break. It was time to hit the reset button," Conyers told VirginiaPreps.com.
"There wasn't anything wrong at Nansemond River. The people there were great. I just felt like I couldn't give them my 100% at this time like I normally can."
Conyers, 31, is getting married on July 24th. The Western Branch High grad from Chesapeake is looking to pursue a job in administration. He's also planning to begin a business with children group homes.
Did the uncertainty that came in 2020 from COVID-19 factor into his decision?
"Definitely," Conyers admitted. "The amount of work added on to an already strenuous job put some things in perspective. Is this all I want to do?
"We also had a situation where our Principal (Dr. Shawn Green) went to the hospital. He's actually recovering and has been transferred to a rehabilitation center, which is an amazing sign that he's on the up and up."
The growing tend of coaching deciding to step aside around Tidewater continues. A total of five football coaches in the Beach District - Shawn Wilson (Salem), Joe Jones (Ocean Lakes), Bill Stachelski (Cox), Carlos Martinez (First Colonial) and Chris DeWitt (Kellam) - decided to hang up their whistle. Ditto for Anton Cannady at Woodrow Wilson High School in Portsmouth, which will be changing its name to Manor in the summer.
"I started when I was young, at the age of 19, and I've been doing this for over a decade," Conyers pointed out. "It's time for me to explore other things."
At Western Branch, Conyers was a four-year starter at linebacker for Lew Johnston and earned All-Southeastern District honors. He got into coaching at that very same school as an assistant with Scott Johnson, for whom he played his senior year with the Bruins. Conyers spent two years coaching linebackers at his alma mater with Johnson, then two more seasons there under Greg Gibson.
In 2014, Conyers was brought in by David Coccoli to join the coaching staff at Nansemond River in the capacity of Head Junior Varsity Coach and varsity assistant. He would be re-united with his mentor Johnston at Nansemond-Suffolk Academy, serving as the defensive coordinator for the Saints when they won the VISAA Division III State Championship in 2015.
Conyers would come back to the Warriors before the start of the 2017 campaign, but spent one season in 2016 as the Head Coach at Green Run, where the Stallions went 4-7 overall. He'd play a key role in the Warriors capturing a regional title and earning their first State Semifinal appearance in 22 years prior to being elevated to Head Coach once Coccoli departed to pursue a job in school administration.
The Warriors finished 8-5 overall in 2018 before going 9-3 during the 2019 campaign, knocking Indian River out of the playoffs and then falling to eventual State Champ Maury in the regional semifinals.
This past season's Nansemond River squad re-grouped from a 20-12 loss to rival King's Fork on March 26th to go 4-1 overall. While the Warriors were unable to compete in the VHSL's postseason based on a decision made by Suffolk Public Schools wanting to keep its teams in a localized bubble, they did however win the Suffolk City Championship, beating King's Fork 36-21 on April 16th.
"I think that we would've been very competitive in Division 5 and one of the final teams playing. But that was out of our control. It did sting a little bit. As a competitor, you want to play for that State Championship, whether it's realistic or not. You still want the opportunity to go out there and try to accomplish that goal," Conyers remarked.
"One of the biggest things we've always preached here at Nansemond River is to win the city. It's a good thing that we were able to accomplish that goal. That's three years in a row for me. Unlike other years, we had a chance to redeem ourselves and we had the opportunity to do it twice. That was a blessing in disguise. I would've hate to have had a regular season slip-up to King's Fork and never had a chance to redeem myself."
Conyers envisions his successor potentially being someone that served on his coaching staff.
"Like I told the parents, I think the right person for the job is on my staff. It's out of my control, though. I may or may not be a part of the process. How in-depth if so I'm also not sure," Conyers stated.
"Nansemond River is going to its due diligence. I ran the weight room for three months before I got anything back. It's a great place to be, so I imagine there will be a lot of interest and hopefully they make the right choice. I'll be here to help the next person transition.
As for whether or not this is the end of coaching football, that remains to be seen. Unlike others that have stepped down around the '757' area code in recent weeks, this one might be labeled in the temporary departure rather than in permanent marker.
"It may or may not be the end of coaching for me," Conyers noted. "It's a good-bye for right now."
Matthew Hatfield serves as Publisher for VirginiaPreps.com, part of the Rivals.com Network, and is a regular contributor to the ACC Sports Journal. Check out Hatfield’s Twitter page for more sports related updates, and you can also read his work in the Suffolk News Herald. To contact Matthew, please e-mail hatfieldsports2k4@yahoo.com, and don’t forget to listen to him from 10 AM to Noon on 757 Saturday Sports Talk on ESPN Radio 94.1.
