BREAKING: Browning leaving Pike Road for Greenville
Patrick Browning ed Pike Road to a state championship in 2021. He has announced that he is leaving for Greenville High School to take the head coaching position. (File Photo)
By TIM GAYLE
Patrick Browning, the only football coach Pike Road has ever known, is moving on to take the head coaching position at Greenville High.
Both schools are expected to issue a press release on Monday announcing the change. Browning finds himself in a unique position, leaving a state championship team on his own terms while accepting a job at a smaller program with fewer resources.
“Pike Road has been extremely good to me and my family,” he said. “I remember when I first got here and all we had was rubber footballs to work with. We’ve built this from the elementary school to the intermediate school and then to the high school and in six years we’ve turned this into a state championship program. I couldn’t be more proud of what the kids and the coaches have accomplished in our time here. I felt like God was just calling me in a new direction and an opportunity presented itself to become the next head coach at Greenville. We just felt like it was the right time for me and my family to take on another opportunity.”
In a Sunday conversation, Browning had nothing but praise for the Patriots and for his time at the school, but his departure is the latest in a series of troubling moves by a school system that has replaced its superintendent, high school principal, boys’ and girls’ basketball coaches, baseball and softball coaches and now its football coach in the last two years alone.
Browning admits his decision to leave wasn’t an easy one. He had a resume that included time as a volunteer assistant at Auburn (2006) and quarterbacks coach at Prairie View A&M (2014), along with high school stops at Beauregard (2007-09) and Dadeville (2011-13, 2015) before he was hired to coach the middle school and junior varsity programs at Pike Road (2016-17) in preparation for its first year as a varsity program in 2018.
That team went 6-5, but the last three went 36-2, including a 5A state championship last December. He ordered uniforms for the first time, oversaw the building of a football stadium and the renovation of a field house while compiling a 66-7 record in his six years at the school, including five undefeated regular seasons.
“It’s definitely mixed emotions,” Browning said. “That’s the hardest part for any coach, whether you’re an assistant coach or the head coach, it’s always hard leaving kids, no matter where you’re at. There’s obviously a stronger emotional attachment here because of everything we had to do here to build the program to this point. But at the end of the day, I’m a big believer that God leads you and shows you doors that He wants you to walk through.”
Browning will replace Josh McLendon, who stepped down last week after seven seasons with the Tigers, saying in a statement that school system administrators wanted to move in a new direction. McLendon is the latest in a string of successful coaches that have been hired at Greenville but haven’t stayed long.
Bryant Vincent, Ben Blackmon and Patrick Plott were successful up-and-coming coaches when hired for brief stays at Greenville and McLendon earned a similar reputation after a pair of nine-win seasons at another Butler County school, McKenzie, in 2013 and 2014.
Browning said he hasn’t spoken with McLendon, but heard about the vacancy from other coaches and decided to apply on Wednesday. He ripped a social media post by an organization labeled as the Butler County Sports Network “confirming” the hire on Thursday before Browning said he had had any formal contact with school system administrators.
“Unfortunately in the world of social media, someone broke a news article that was very premature that was not accurate,” Browning said. “It said I had the job, which was not true. Fortunately, both sides had interest and we were able to work things out. But I hate my kids had to see that and hear that because you always want to be the first to tell your kids.”
Browning said he planned to speak with his players on Monday.
“It’s going to be hard,” he said. “I think every coach relates. You’ve invested so much time with them, they become an extension of your family.”
Browning said he wasn’t sure whether he would be able to hire any of his current assistant coaches at Greenville.
“That I don’t know yet,” he said. “Me and the staff are extremely close. It’s like a family. I’m going to miss each and every one of them and if I get the opportunity to bring any of them with me, I will in a heartbeat.”
Browning said administrators “asked me my input” regarding a new coach and the Patriots are expected to move quickly to name a new coach. Browning said he’s confident the program will be in good hands moving forward.
“I remember three years ago when people still mistook us for Pike Lib,” Browning said, referring to the private school in Troy. “Now, I think it’s really clear who Pike Road is and where it’s going. I think it’s safe to say most everyone in the state knows who Pike Road is now.
“I think we’re leaving the program in really good shape. I think they’re going to get a really good coach to replace me and the kids will be cared for and loved by the next coach.”