Woodside picks new head coach
Coley has winning pedigree from years with Phoebus
Think of Alonzo Coley’s hiring as Woodside High’s new head football coach as sort of an “if you can’t beat them, join them” thing.
Coley, 47, brings eight recent seasons (2012-19) of head coaching experience for Kecoughtan to his new position at Woodside, two of them very good ones. His 2014 Warriors went 9-3 and the 2018 version was 7-4 during a stint in which Coley’s overall record was 37-47.
But his biggest successes came as an assistant coach at Phoebus, before and after his Kecoughtan gig. In the first stint, 2007-11, the Phantoms won four consecutive Class 5 state titles — the final one with him as offensive coordinator.
He has spent the past four seasons back at Phoebus as the offensive line coach. The Phantoms have won state titles the past three seasons, and in 2022, when Coley was also the offensive coordinator, the Phantoms averaged 45.4 points.
Coley said his past four seasons at Phoebus were the most instructive.
“I learned so much about building a winning culture,” he said of his time with Phoebus head coach Jeremy Blunt. “When I was there before (with Bill Dee and Stan Sexton as head coaches), the culture was kind of established.
“Jeremy Blunt has changed how things were done, and I learned a lot about connecting with the community and connecting with student-athletes after COVID.
“There are so many more outlets for athletes to work out and practice on their own, but you have to build your own team community.”
He feels Woodside is fertile ground to do that because of its long winning tradition.
“The athletes they’ve had have always been gritty, and Woodside has always been a well-coached, very disciplined team,” he said.
The Wolverines had fewer elite athletes than usual in going 1-9 in 2023, Brek Hall’s only season as head coach, because 13 transferred in the wake of Danny Dodson’s resignation after 24 seasons as head coach. Five made the all-district team for their new schools.
Though they won just one Peninsula
District title during Dodson’s tenure — during which Phoebus usually ended on top — the Wolverines were perennially second or third.
Their most famous triumph was a 14-9 win over Phoebus in 2011 that ended the Phantoms’ state-record 52-game win streak.
Coley acknowledged that in a transfer-happy atmosphere in area high schools that is increasingly mirroring college football, he has to keep his athletes at Woodside to win.
“You have to make it exciting for them and bring an exciting brand of football,” Coley said.
Coley said that will involve getting as many players as possible involved in the spread. He wants every player to understand they are an option.
If so, a lot of players could get touches. Coley plans to connect with all of the other sports at Woodside and get to know the athletes, with a goal of getting 100 players in the program.
“We want to showcase the players more in the offseason and make a bigger difference in their lives,” he said.
Woodside athletic director Paul Macklin said Coley was the best choice from a large candidate pool.
“His focus will be on getting them to be good football players, good citizens and bringing the tradition back to Woodside football,” he said. “We definitely feel he’s the best possible fit.”