The McIntosh Chiefs have a new head football coach, and they didn’t have to search far to find him.

McIntosh officially hired Starr’s Mill defensive coordinator Glenn Griffin as its head coach yesterday afternoon, McIntosh athletics director/assistant principal Steve Cole said.

He was interviewed last Thursday for the McIntosh job, and he was one of three finalists for the job, said Cole, who interviewed eight candidates for the position.

“Glenn is very well liked in the community,” Cole said. “He’s a great person as far as being a person of character and integrity. He coaches football hard, and he’s great off the field, too. One thing I’ve noticed about him from seeing him at sporting events is that kids flock to him. That’s impressive.

“It just seems like a great fit. I think he’ll blossom in this position. He's excited about the opportunity.”

Griffin replaces Dwight Jones, who resigned in January to become the head football coach at Jones County. Jones went 2-18 in his two seasons at McIntosh.

This is Griffin’s first head coaching job in his 26-year coaching career. He previously was Starr’s Mill’s defensive coordinator and strength and conditioning coach since the school opened in 1997.

Griffin’s coaching experience includes two years at Palmetto High School and one year each at Paulding County, Hart County and Upson Lee High Schools.

He was athletic director and assistant coach at Cartersville High School for 10 years.

Griffin was the recipient of the 2002 AFLAC National Assistant Coach of the Year Award.

He has a tough task ahead of him at McIntosh, which has gone 12-38 in the last five years.

Griffin’s experience in helping Starr’s Mill become one of the top football programs in the state certainly worked in his favor, Cole said.

“He’s played a key role in the success that Starr’s Mill has had,” Cole said. “And, as far as strength, those kids over at Starr’s Mill are strong. It’s an exciting thing getting someone from a successful program. That’s what we do want to be, a successful program.”

Starr’s Mill head football coach Mike Earwood has coached with Griffin for 22 years, including the entire time at Starr’s Mill and one year each at West Georgia University, where Griffin was a grad assistant, and Upson Lee. He feels McIntosh made the right decision in hiring Griffin.

“It’s a great hire for McIntosh,” Earwood said. “I don’t feel they could have done any better. ... It’s going to be a tough job. Knowing Coach Griffin’s focus and work habits, though, I think he’ll do a great job.”

Earwood said it will be difficult to square off against his old friend on the football field.

“The only regret I have is that we’ll have to compete against each other,” Earwood said. “It has nothing to do with him being a good coach. He’s like a brother to me. Somebody has to lose.

“That’s something I didn’t want to experience.”