By Staff
BBy BRUCE HIXON Sports Editor
Some might call the move from head coach to assistant coach a step down.
Not Eddie Brundidge and not when it comes to joining the T.R. Miller Tigers football coaching staff.
"It's not a step down when you get an opportunity to work for one of the top guys in the state in Coach (Jamie) Riggs. He knows the importance of having good assistant coaches," Brundidge said.
Brundidge already knows that from experience. This will actually be his second tour of duty at T.R. Miller. Brundidge was an assistant coach under Riggs from 1995-97 when he worked with the Tigers running backs, defensive linemen and linebackers. He also served as an assistant track coach.
Since then Brundidge has spent the last six seasons as a head coach at Jackson.
"We didn't have as much success at Jackson as I would have liked, but it was a good learning experience for me. It gave me the chance to see the other side of coaching after having been an assistant at T.R. Miller," Brundidge said. "The experience I gained as a head coach and the familiarity I already have with T.R. Miller should really help me. Not only do I have another chance to work with Coach Riggs, but the rest of the coaching staff is pretty much unchanged with Coach (Alan) Baker, Coach (Jack) Whigham, Coach (Jim) Hart and Coach (Paul) Smith."
Brundidge, who played at Doza (now part of Brantley High School) and Troy State University, is expected to have similar coaching duties to that of his first stint with the Tigers. One new area for Brundidge will be special teams.
"Special teams is such a vital part of football. It may not be one-third of the game like offense and defense, but it's very critical. A big part of football is field position and how well you kick and cover returns can really shorten or lengthen the field for the opponent," Brundidge said.
Brundidge will also help Whigham with the linemen.
"The line is where it all starts. If you can control the line, you can control the game," Brundidge said.
Brundidge's final duty will be working with the T.R. Miller linebackers.
"Linebackers are another vital part of the game. I really haven't had a chance to know the players yet so I'm not sure what kind of schemes we'll use," he said.
One thing has changed since Brundidge was at T.R. Miller the first time. During his first stint the school was in Class 4A. Since then it has dropped to Class 3A.
"I really haven't had a lot of experience with Class 3A schools. T.R. Miller was in 4A when I was here the first time and Jackson is in Class 4A. However, I know there are some very good 3A programs in this part of the state and in this region," Brundidge said.
Riggs said he welcomes the return of Brundidge.
"We're glad to have Eddie back and we're expecting him to make a lot of important contributions to our program," Riggs said.