LFO names coaches

Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe High School athletic director Chris Eaves announced the hiring of two head coaches Thursday, including a successor to longtime boys’ basketball coach Jerry Jones, who retired due to health reasons earlier this week.

Josh Laney, who had been an assistant under Jones, will take over the head job. A former LFO athlete who graduated in 2008, Laney coached the Warriors this summer when Jones became ill, and Eaves said he quickly earned the players’ trust.

“He took them to all the camps, and he has a good relationship,” Eaves said. “Josh played for Coach Jones, and he knows the system. He will fit in well. The biggest thing about Josh is he knows the high school players and the ones at the middle school.

“You don’t replace a Jerry Jones, somebody who has coached for 52 years. To be successful for that long says everything about him.”

Eaves also said Matt Holden will replace Johnny Burch as baseball coach. Burch, who had a 71-83 record in six seasons, including 44 wins the past three years, stepped down to spend more time with his family. Eaves said Burch will remain as a teacher and has been offered the chance to serve as the Warriors’ pitching coach.

Holden, a 2009 LFO graduate and former baseball player, was an assistant coach under Burch a year ago, his second stint at LFO. He also spent time as an assistant at Ridgeland.

“First off, Johnny did an excellent job here, and Matt intends to keep him as pitching coach,” Eaves said. “Johnny wanted to step back and spend more time with his family. He has a son just getting into his teenage years and a daughter starting college.

“Matt was a great player here and at Chattanooga State, and he knows the players. We feel he can step right in and the program won’t miss a beat.”

Contact Lindsey Young at lyoung@times freepress.com or 423-7576296. Follow him on Twitter @youngsports22.