By Shannon Fagan, WEIS Sports Director

CENTRE – Throughout his childhood, his high school and college football career, and now early in his head coaching career, Cherokee County High School coach Bayley Blanchard has been surrounded by talented coaches with impressive pedigrees.

It’s proven to be a successful blueprint for Blanchard in the past, and that trend will continue during the 2026 football season – his first at the helm with the Warriors.

When he was hired in the middle of last December, Blanchard inherited a veteran Warrior staff that already included Shawn Turner, Todd Wheeler, Christian Chandler, Josh Decker, Terry Stephens, Devrin Starr, Garrett Young, Caleb Hays, Brent Hill, Jim Garmany, Brad Weaver, Patrick Lowe, Andrew Dudley, and trainer Blake Revette.

All of those guys return to serve the Warrior football program in different capacities this year, but Blanchard has also added a few ‘young guns’ whom he hopes will also contribute to the players’ overall development.

Recent additions to the Warrior staff include offensive line coach Austin Bishop, defensive coordinator Dillon Terry, wide receivers coach Silas Thompson, and quarterbacks coach Tyren Dupree.

“It’s pretty good when you can come to a place and the coaching staff is already as good as it is, and then you get to bring guys in to help who are good too,” Blanchard said. “We have a lot of winners on our staff, a lot of guys when they played ball, they won, and when they’ve coached ball, they’ve won. We’ve got a good mix of veterans and young guys. We’ve got a lot of college football playing experience as well on the staff, and I think that’s big.”

All of the new additions to the Warrior football staff have some type of connection to Blanchard.

Bishop and Thompson played with Blanchard at both Piedmont and West Alabama. Terry also played with Blanchard at Piedmont and, along with Thompson, coached with him at Glencoe last year.

Dupree was also on the sideline opposite Blanchard when Dupree was a standout quarterback and defensive back with the Warriors. Dupree graduated from CCHS in 2018 and went on to become a standout linebacker at Liberty University, where he earned the 2023 Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year.

“I’m blessed to have a lot of good guys,” Blanchard said. “Just getting to combine all the stuff we’ve all learned together, I think that’s a really big deal.

“The biggest thing to me about a coaching staff is not all the Xs and Os they know. It’s the camaraderie we have in here around the table. I don’t want to bring in guys who don’t fit with everybody. I think we’ve got a really good group.”

Blanchard said that “really good group” of newcomers has fit in well with the veteran assistants, as well as the players, during their preseason workouts.

“The kids have been great. They’ve accepted them really well,” Blanchard said. “I think they know there’s a lot of knowledge in the room. There’s not a lot of goofing off. They know when we’re telling them to do something we’re telling them to do it for a reason.

“We tell them all the time that our time is done. Now it’s your time to play high school football. We got to do all the things they are doing now, and we had a great time, and we just want that for them now.”

Some of the coaches, Blanchard said, work out with the players in the weight room to give them an experienced hands-on approach on how to get things done.

“They’ll get in there and do a few reps with them,” he said. “That’s another thing with these guys who have played. They can get in there and show them and say, ‘When I tell you something, I can still do it.’ That’s a big deal for the kids as well.”

Another big deal for the players, Blanchard said, is having a mix of coaches on the staff who have played college ball and have been through the recruiting process.

“Things like that help these guys not only understand that, but that’s not the most important thing we’re trying to do here. We’re trying to win and make them better men, but if they do have that chance to go play (in college), you have guys in this room you can go to for advice who will give you good advice and won’t steer you in the wrong direction.”

Blanchard said the biggest thing for the Warriors right now is installing their playbook for the upcoming season.

“It’s going to be a little bit of new terminology, offense and defense. I think that’s the biggest hurdle, the new terminology,” Blanchard said. “Weight room-wise, they get after it. These coaches who have been here, they’ve had a great weight room. (Former Head) Coach (Jacob) Kelley did a good job with that.”

The Warriors open the 2026 season at home against Highway 9 rival Piedmont on Aug. 28.