
There were two major head coaching vacancies filled this week with South Forsyth and Roswell introducing their new head coaches. South Forsyth hired James Thomson, South Florida’s director of internal scouting, as its football coach Wednesday. Thomson, a Florida native, was a Georgia head coach previously at Tucker in 2021 and Northview from 2017 to 2020. Thomson left Tucker to become head coach at Winter Haven in Florida for the 2022 season. He’s also a former head coach in Florida at Gainesville (2011-12) and DeLand (2013-14). South Forsyth is a Class 6A school. The War Eagles were 17-25 in four seasons under Troy Morris and 2-8 in 2024.
On Friday, Roswell announced the hiring of Jonathan “JT” Thompson as new head coach. Thompson previously served as Lee County’s offensive coordinator from 2019-2024.
“Roswell hit a grand slam by hiring JT,” said Dean Fabrizio, Lee County’s head football coach in a statement to ITG Next-Georgia. “Coach Thompson is an outstanding coach and person. He has been a big reason for our success here at Lee County.”
Under Thompson, Lee County’s offense averaged over 53 points per game. Their total of 745 points for the 2024 season ranks as the seventh-most points in state history.
Roswell athletic director Ben Sutter said that Thompson checked all the boxes for what the program was looking for in its next head coach. “Coach Thompson obviously possesses an incredible offensive mind when it comes to the game of football, but what stood out to me was not just the X’s and O’s, but what his vision was for the entire program,” Sutter said.
Thompson said Roswell was the place he wanted to be both professionally and personally.
“This is the first head coaching position I have applied for because I wanted to go to a special place for me from a football standpoint, but for my family too,” he said. “I wanted to go to a great community that loves its football but also loves its family values, and Roswell is that place. I’m honored to be the next head football coach at Roswell.”
There have been 52 openings as Georgia’s 415 football-playing schools this offseason. Twenty-two jobs have been filled.
Offseason openings and hires:
Alpharetta – Jason Kervin (Hired Brian Landis)
Armuchee – Eric Belew
Banneker – Braxton Kelly
Berrien – Ken Eldridge
Brookwood – Philip Jones (Hired Chad Nighbert)
Calvary Day – Mark Stroud (Hired Jason Cameron)
Cedar Grove – Roderick Moore (Hired Rich Freeman)
Cedar Shoals – Leroy Ryals
Cedartown – Jamie Abrams
Central Gwinnett – Larry Harold (Hired Terrance Banks)
Chattahoochee County – Bruce Figgins
Commerce – Mark Hollars (Hired Lenny Gregory)
Crisp County – Lawrence Smith
Dalton – Kit Carpenter (Hired Chris Prewett)
Dawson County – Sid Maxwell (Hired Jaybo Shaw)
Elbert County – Shannon Jarvis (Hired Andy Dyer)
Emanuel County Institute – Chris Kearson
Etowah – Matt Kemper (Hired Brett Vavra)
Flowery Branch – Jason Tester (Hired Michael Perry)
Gordon Central – Lenny Gregory
Greene County – Terrance Banks
Griffin – Clifford Fedd
Grovetown – Cory Barnes
Heritage (Ringgold) – E.K. Slaughter (Hired Jeremy New)
Hughes – Daniel Williams
Josey – Lawrence Pinkney
KIPP Atlanta Collegiate – James Briscoe
Lithia Springs – Corey Jarvis (Hired Ben Arnold)
Loganville – Gene Cathcart/Stephen Smith (Hired Nic Snowden)
Luella – Craig Coleman
Marietta – Richard Morgan (Hired Cameron Duke)
Marion County – Billy Law
Meadowcreek – Todd Wofford (Hired Johnny Burdette)
Mount Paran Christian – Matt Ely
Murray County – Kurt Napier
Norcross – Keith Maloof (Hired Corey Richardson)
Northside-Warner Robins – Ben Bailey (Hired Daniel Williams)
Northview – Scott Schwarzer
Pace Academy – Nick Bach
Parkview – Joe Sturdivant
Pataula Charter – Sam Brown
Pelham – Leonard Guyton
Roswell – Chris Prewett (Hired Jonathan “JT” Thompson)
Savannah Country Day – Roc Batten (Hired Joey Blackmore)
Schley County – Darren Alford
South Forsyth – Troy Morris (Hired James Thomson)
Southeast Whitfield – Todd Murray
Sprayberry – Brett Vavra
Union County – Michael Perry
Veterans – Josh Ingram (Hired Steve DeVoursney)
Washington – Justin Rivers
Westminster – Gerry Romberg (Hired Nelson Stewart)