Today’s guest on the Coach and Coordinator podcast is Thad Wells, head coach at Mooresville (North Carolina) High School. Wells begins his first season as head coach at Mooresville, after he was the head coach at Blacksburg (Virginia) High School for three seasons. Under Wells, Blacksburg went 27-12 overall, including winning a state title in 2016. Last season, Blacksburg went 11-2 overall, but lost in the regional final game by a single point.

Before coming to Blacksburg, Wells spent one season as a head coach at Colleton Preparatory Academy in Walterboro, South Carolina. Wells was 27 years old when he was hired to be a head coach at Colleton in 2014. Prior to becoming a head coach, Wells spent a year as an offensive coordinator at Virginia High School in Bristol, Virginia. Before coaching, Wells played football at Richlands High School before playing at Emory & Henry College. He graduated from Radford University, where he was a football assistant at Radford High School during that time. Wells also returned to Richlands as an assistant coach after college.

On today’s show, Wells and host Keith Grabowski talk about Wells’ outside-the-box philosophy to formation, his purpose in life, and how he inspires others to follow their passion.

Show Notes

1:23 Inspired to coach by a video game

3:52 Video games being a helpful distractor

5:58 Different approach to game planning during the week

11:12 Adapting formation from its starting point

13:07 Personnel changes adjusting the schemes

16:33 Formation according to position on the field

19:29 His passion for coaching

27:10 Becoming aware of a coach’s program

29:46 Developing a culture through choice

31:49 The Winning Edge