Mark O'Bryant reinstated as Coosa Christian football coach, following season suspension
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Coosa Christian football has reinstated suspended head coach Mark O’Bryant on Tuesday announced by the school.
Coosa Christian suspended O’Bryant to try and appease the AHSAA as part of sanction brought on due to a violation of the coaching outside the school year rule. The program was knocked out of the 2024 and 2025 playoffs, but the suspension made the school eligible for the 2025 postseason.
“Coach O’Bryant has been a valued part of our football program for many years, and we look forward to his leadership as we prepare for the upcoming season,” the statement read.
The school suspended O’Bryant on Aug. 9 and brought in Rush Propst to lead the Conquerors. Propst led the program to its first state title with a 29-22 win over Lanett. It is unknown what the next steps are for Propst, but he has expressed interest in coaching for the next few years.
“We also extend our appreciation to Coach Rush Propst, who served as Interim Head Coach during this past season, and to his wife, Stefnie, for their time and effort in supporting our football program. We are thankful for their service to our student-athletes during this period,” the statement said.
On the field O’Bryant’s tenure has been magical, seeing the school make the first semifinal appearance (2022) and state championship appearance (2023) in school history. In 2024, the program won the school’s first AHSAA region championship but forfeits of five wins sent them into a tie for last place and out of the playoffs.
O’Bryant took over for the Conquerors in 2020 leading them to a 3-7 record that year and a 4-6 record the next. Officially, back-to-back nine-win campaigns followed before this year’s 4-6 record. On the field, O’Bryant is 38-21 —but, officially, his record is 29-30 due to the nine forfeits from the last two years.
The 2024 violations and sanctions for the Coosa Christian football program was not the first time that it has been sanctioned by the AHSAA. In 2023, they had to forfeit four wins for a violation of the AHSAA’s transfer policy. The controversy didn’t end there, as when the Conquerors returned to the field they did so with a 94-7 win over Cedar Bluff that saw the program received push back from other coaches in the area.
After that game, O’Bryant told the Gadsden Times that the lopsided win was revenge for Cherokee County Schools Superintendent Mike Welsh for ‘sabotaging’ his program. Welsh never returned a request for comment from the Gadsden Times, and did overhear an appeal from Coosa Christian as head of the AHSAA Central Board. Coaches around the Gadsden area decried the actions of O’Bryant following the win.
Maxwell Donaldson covers high school sports, Jax State athletics, the outdoors in Alabama and more for the Gadsden Times. Find him on Twitter/X @_Max_Donaldson and contact him at MDonaldson@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on The Gadsden Times: Mark O’Bryant reinstated as Coosa Christian football coach
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