South Georgia - In The Game High School Sports Magazine

there was a common thread. He had played for Tison and worked under Barber. Dickerson was shaped from the same mold and understood the system that had made Clinch County so successful. “We’ve had the same coaching staff for almost 36 years. Nearly all of the coaches played for either Donald Tison or Cecil Barber. The rec league teams run the same plays as the high school team. We’ve had a lot of continuity here,” says Len Robbins, president of the Panthers booster club. “Jim and Cecil coach the same way, which is basically work your tail off.”

Dickerson set out to keep the program successful. Coaching the Panthers was his dream job, and if he didn’t do things the right way, his career in his hometown could be over. The most important thing Dickerson did was continue to expect great things from his players. “If you expect a lot out of your kids, that’s what you will get. That carries over into the classroom, too,” he says.

The players also have high expectations for themselves. They understand what Panthers football is all about, and they don’t want to be the team to derail the train.

“We have a saying at Clinch County: ‘Tradition never graduates.’ There’s not much else to do in Homerville. There’s only one team down here, and it’s not the Georgia Bulldogs, Atlanta Falcons or the Jacksonville Jaguars. It’s the Clinch County Panthers,” says Dickerson. Most of the players come from a long line of Panthers. Their fathers, uncles, cousins and brothers played for Clinch. They have heard the stories and watched the games from the stands, waiting for their turn. When that opportunity arises, they are ready. “We get the most out of our players. They know there is small window of opportunity for them to play and they want to make it count,” says Dickerson.

That single-minded community focus combined with consistency on the coaching staff has translated into wins – and a lot of them. Through the 2010 regular season, the Panthers are 72-19-1. In 2004, Dickerson’s first season as head coach, the Panthers tied Hawkinsville, 14-14, for a share of the state championship. Two years later, Clinch lost to Lincoln in the state finals. The Panthers advanced to the semifinals in 2007 and 2009. Clinch was 10-0 and ranked number one in Class A in the state this season. In the final regular season game of the year, the Panthers defeated the mighty Charlton County Indians, 33-7. It was a game the whole state watched but Dickerson was unimpressed with all the attention.

“Polls in the season mean nothing in high school football,” Dickerson says. “As long as you get one of those top four spots, everyone has a chance. The big thing is getting in the playoffs. We try to take it one week at the time and not look ahead. That’s easier said than done sometimes. I don’t care much about the number-one ranking. All that does is put a bullseye on your back and give the other team a good locker room pep talk.”

Winning 10 in a row in the current region lineup and winning another region championship is a good position to be in. After realignment, Region 2-A is the state’s toughest Class A region, which includes Wilcox – last year’s state champion – and perennial power Charlton. Earlier in the season, Clinch beat Wilcox. Then Wilcox turned around and beat Charlton. “But that doesn’t mean a thing. The match-ups are totally different,” says Dickerson. Prior to the Charlton game, Dickerson insisted he wasn’t looking beyond the region schedule. “Our biggest focus is to make sure we are one of the top four teams. After that, we’ll readjust our goals. I felt like we could win the region this year. It would be a great chance to win our region with it being so tough. After Charlton, we’ll sit down and make a new goal.”

Dickerson says the 2010 Panthers are the best group he’s ever coached. The key to their success is not necessarily their athletic ability, though they are all good players. Instead, he says they are leaders in their school and community. “They’re not ever in trouble. They’re respectful and they learn easily. They’re about average in terms of football talent but they are above average everywhere else. That has made them a very good team,” he says.

Dickerson has done just about everything a coach could do at Clinch County. He’s won five region titles, a state championship and finished second twice. He’s even coached an NFL player – Jonathan Smith, who played three years for the Buffalo Bills. Dickerson could move up to a bigger program and ply his trade on a much larger stage. Fortunately for the Clinch County faithful, such a move isn’t in the cards. “I’m not going anywhere. The community has accepted me. I had a lot of anxiety about following Coach Tison and Coach Barber. The community and the administration have supported me. I’m settled here and I’m going to stay until I retire,” he says.

Without the support of his family, Dickerson wouldn’t be the coach or man he is today. He and his wife, Kristi, have two children – Trey, a 2010 graduate of Clinch County High who played for his father, and Kristi-Anna, a sophomore on the cheerleading squad. When he isn’t coaching, Dickerson is active at Homerville First United Methodist Church or fishing. “Fishing is my favorite thing to do outside of football. I go once or twice a week out of the season,” he says.

Dickerson says it was very difficult to follow a legend. The man who comes behind him will say the same thing. •

---