5 Metro Nashville high school football coaches ready for Year 2

Last season, five high school football coaches — Eddie Woods, Maurice Fitzgerald, Kurt Page, Tyrus Ward and Thomas McPhail — took over at Metro Nashville Public Schools.

Here’s a look at how they fared in Year 1, as well as what to expect from each team in Year 2:

Stratford football coach Maurice Fitzgerald

Eddie Woods

Cane Ridge coach Eddie Woods

School:
Cane Ridge (Region 6-5A)
Last year’s record: 8-3 (Lost to Independence in Class 5A first round)
Career record: 24-20
Previous head coaching jobs: Melrose (2012-14)

2015: Despite finishing fourth in Region 6-5A, the Ravens reached the eight-win mark for just the second time in program history, including five straight victories to close out the regular season.

2016: Cane Ridge, still looking for its first playoff win, won’t be short on experience as the Ravens welcome back 20 starters, including quarterback D.J. Thorpe, as well as all-region selections Emari Barton (RB/CB) and Noah Bayless (RB/LB).

Quotable: “I’m looking for us to be that breakout team. Why not us? We have experience. We have all the ingredients to be a championship team, and I just want to see how we respond to adverse situations. We’ve put in the work to be a championship-caliber team.” — Eddie Woods.

Straford coach Maurice Fitzgerald

Maurice Fitzgerald

School:
Stratford (Region 5-3A)
Last year’s record: 8-4 (Lost to CPA in Class 3A second round)
Career record: 113-81
Previous head coaching jobs: Pearl-Cohn (1989-2005)

2015: Fitzgerald, a two-time state champion at Pearl-Cohn, returned to the high school coaching ranks last fall, leading Stratford to its first playoff win since 2004 — 39-0 over Fairview.

2016: Despite losing several key skill players, the Spartans have a solid corps of talent, including senior quarterback Josh Trueheart and several key defensive players. Hendersonville transfer T.J. Carter is sure to make an impact as well.

Quotable: “It’s day by day really. There are so many intangibles that go on at inner-city schools that don’t go on anywhere else, and you’ve got to juggle things and try to keep the balance — not high, not low. From that standpoint I’m not looking past the first game, or really the first practice.” — Maurice Fitzgerald

Hillwood coach Kurt Page

Kurt Page

School:
Hillwood (Region 6-4A)
Last year’s record: 5-6 (lost to Springfield in Class 4A first round)
Career record: 118-70
Previous head coaching jobs: St. Thomas (Texas; 2006-07); Father Ryan (1994-2001), BGA (1989-93)

2015: In addition to dropping down a classification, Page‘s arrival helped steady the ship for Hillwood, which was 16-84 over the previous decade. After starting 2-4, the Hilltoppers won three of their final four regular-season games, securing their first playoff appearance since 2004.

2016: The Hilltoppers graduated six all-region performers, but they won’t exactly be starting over. Junior nose guard and fullback Chris Clark (6-1, 305) returns after missing the majority of 2015 with a shoulder injury, and Page also got several athletes from other sports on the football field.

Quotable: “The No. 1 thing we’ve established at Hillwood with the kids and our community is the 629 brand. That’s what I brought in when I started about this time last year, and our kids have really embraced it. Be a six-second player (average length of a play), and be the first team every Friday night to score 29 points.” — Kurt Page.

Whites Creek coach Tyrus Ward

Tyrus Ward

School:
Whites Creek (Region 5-3A)
Last year’s record: 3-7
Career record: 3-7
Previous head coaching jobs: First head coaching job

2015: Ward inherited a program in rather poor shape. And while Whites Creek didn’t turn things around overnight, he definitely got things rolling in the right direction. The Cobras tripled the school’s win total from the previous three seasons, and five of the seven losses were by single digits.

2016: While last year’s senior class was instrumental to the team’s success in 2015, the Cobras have a solid corps of talent returning, including standout running back and linebacker Jacob Frazier.

Quotable: “We kind of exceeded expectations last year — not that they were very high. We were 3-7, but five of those games were decided by a touchdown against teams that blew us out by 40 or 50 points the year before. Hopefully in Year 2 we’ll get a chance to upset some of those guys.” — Tyrus Ward

Hunters Lane coach Thomas McPhail

Thomas McPhail

School:
Hunters Lane (Region 6-5A)
Last year’s record: 1-9
Career record: 29-34
Previous head coaching jobs: Antioch (2001-05)

2015: Other than a 12-0 victory over winless Glencliff, there wasn’t a whole lot to get excited about at Hunters Lane, which was outscored 359-58. Considering the state of the program McPhail inherited and that he didn’t take over until late May, last season went about as well as anyone could have expected.

2016: Two-way linemen Devione Waller and Zyshaun Simmons are two the top returning players, but with the program’s dwindling numbers, McPhail said that he will rely heavily on his freshman class.

Quotable: “We did make some progress, but we’re continuing to fight the numbers battle. It’s not where I want it, but it is better. Will that mean more wins? Who knows in our league, but what we’re looking at now is are we losing 28-14 or 48-14?” — Thomas McPhail.

Top returning high school football players

Reach Michael Murphy at 615-259-8262 and on Twitter @Murph_TNsports .