By CURTIS ROCKWELL/Sports Director

For the first time in over fifty years, five head football coaching positions in the “Southern Six” are open as January comes to an end.

The number had been at four for over a month, but St. Martin’s Ty Smith stepped down Friday after three years at the helm of the Yellow Jackets according to sources close to the situation.

Smith went just 6-25 from 2022-2024, but St. Martin went 0-17 in Region 4-7A play during that span.

His first Yellow Jacket team started out very well at 3-1, before seven straight league losses ended the year at 3-8. That was followed by an 0-10 overall mark in 2023.

St. Martin bounced back a bit to open last season at 3-2, before once again losing five straight region games to end the year at 3-7.

The Yellow Jackets are now looking for their third head coach in five seasons.

Meanwhile, the other four openings in the area remain as George County, Hancock, Moss Point and Bay High all are still searching for the next leaders of their respective football programs.

According to several sources, Biloxi defensive coordinator Eric Collier is atop the list to become the next head coach of the Rebels and that could happen as soon as the next school board meeting which is set for next week.

Collier came across the Alabama state line for his first job in Mississippi at the beginning of last season, after a long coaching career in the Alabama prep circles.

Collier accompanied Jamey Dubose in his trip from Lower Alabama to South Mississippi when Dubose took over as head coach at Biloxi. Prior to that, Collier spent one season on then head coach Kane Wommack’s staff at the University of South Alabama as Director of Football Development.

Before that, Collier was a successful head coach at Theodore High where he went 71-41 as the Bobcats head coach over a 10-year span. The Bobcats were especially successful in his last three seasons, winning 33 of the last 38 games under Collier. The 2022 team went 13-1 and reached the Class 6A state semifinals before losing a rematch to eventual state champion Saraland. Theodore won three region titles in his last six years.

He also spent five years with the program as an assistant coach, and was also the head coach at Alma Bryant for four seasons well going 10-30.

In other openings, Bay High is apparently down to two candidates to lead the Tigers, former Biloxi head coach Katlan French and Hattiesburg High offensive coordinator Archie Gibbs.

French is currently the defensive coordinator at Gulfport.

In Moss Point, the search for what will be the fourth head football coach of the Tigers in four seasons has reportedly centered on Perry Central defensive coordinator Derick Jenkins and Richton assistant coach Otto Crawford.

Crawford is a former Tiger player, who also currently serves as both the head boys and girls basketball coach at Richton. Jenkins has been in the same capacity for several seasons in New Augusta after serving as one season as DC at St. Martin.

Finally, at Hancock, the word is that several of the top candidates for the Hawks have turned down the position and HHS is back to ground zero in its search.

One name that has surfaced recently is current Greene County head coach Mikey King, a George County alum. King was also reportedly in the mix for the opening at his alma mater, but was recently eliminated from consideration according to sources.