Presbyterian Names High School Coach To Succeed the Fired Spangler

May 11, 2021 by Staff

Pulaski Academy High School (Little Rock, Arkansas) head coach Kevin Kelley was named to the same position at Presbyterian on Monday, replacing the fired Tommy Spangler after a 4-3 season.

Spangler, who played college ball at Georgia as a defensive back, spent 10 seasons as head coach of the Blue Hose and 14 seasons on the staff. He first led the team from 2001-2006, then left to become the defensive coordinator at Louisiana Tech where he was a Broyles Award nominee in 2011 under Sonny Dykes. When Dykes left to become the head coach at California, Spangler wasn't retained by incoming head coach Skip Holtz and he returned to Presbyterian as the DC in 2013. He was promoted to head coach in 2017 for a second stint after Harold Nichols resigned. Spangler's teams were 54-52 over-all, but just 12-28 in his latest four-year stint.

Now, the attention turns to the incoming Kelley. one of the most successful high school coaches in the country. The question is whether or not he will stick to some of the same strategies he employed at the collegiate prep school, such as never punting, almost always employing the onside kick, and choosing the two-point conversion over PAT's at the start of games. His methods earned Pulaski Academy nine state titles, including six in Class 5-A over the last seven years. His high school record is 216-29-1 in 18 seasons.