Greenville High School football coach Quintarus McCray called his school board’s decision Tuesday night to reinstate football a mixed blessing.
As McCray, in his second year as the Hornets’ coach, continues to build his program, the good news is that McCray’s players won’t lose a full year of development.
The tough part, now, is how McCray can put a quality team together before the Hornets season is set to begin, tentatively set for Oct. 9.
The Greenville Public School Board voted 4-1 to reinstate all fall and winter middle and high school activities, including football, volleyball, cross country, choir band, cheerleading, basketball and soccer.
“We are supposed to go into the SEC West (Region 2-6A) without any practice, and I don’t know how we are supposed to do that,” McCray said. “I think the best we can do is look at the upcoming games as an extended spring practice.”
Even in the best of recent years, the Greenville football program has struggled to compete in the highest level of Mississippi High School football. Four victories in a season is the last any Hornet team has had in the last two decades.
By McCray’s count, at least 11 of his players transferred out of the district once it was clear that Greenville would not be starting football on time.
“I lost players at many key positions, including my starting quarterback,” McCray said. “I have two youngsters who may turn out to be good quarterbacks, but they have never played at the high school level.”
On Wednesday morning, McCray was busy calling other high school coaches in search of games to schedule.
“We are considering going independent this season,” McCray said. “I am trying to find coaches in the area who have open dates and would be willing to play us.”
