Friday’s state championship brought the Walker family a little piece of Georgia High School Football history.
Sandy Creek’s 29-15 win in the state title game gave Chip Walker his first championship as a head coach. His father, Rodney Walker, led West Rome to a state title in 1984. According to the Georgia High School Football Historians Association, Chip and Rodney Walker are the first father and son duo to both capture Georgia state championships as head coaches.
“We’re in the record books,’’ Rodney told Chip as the two embraced after Friday’s game.
“And you've got a lot of guts. I wouldn’t have thrown the ball.’’
The Walkers moved to Tyrone prior to the 1999 season, with Chip serving as an assistant under Rodney. Chip took over head coaching duties when “Big Walker” retired in 2004.
With both Rodney and Chip at the helm, Creek enjoyed tremendous regular season success, but experienced turbulence during the playoffs -- never advancing past the second round until this year.
Rodney, who is now the head coach at Mary Persons in Forsyth, has been on the sidelines throughout Sandy Creek’s historic 2009 playoff run.
‘Big Walker’s’ Mary Persons team failed to make the postseason this fall, but seeing his former team succeed with his son in charge has been therapeutic to say the least.
Both Walkers have enjoyed years of success on the sidelines. Rodney Walker first took a head coaching job at Villa Rica in 1972. He has led a Georgia team almost every year since, with the lone exception being 2005 -- the season he handed over the reins to his son and sat out one autumn before going home to Mary Persons.
‘Big Walker’ has compiled an impressive 285-134-3 career record with stints at Villa Rica, Gilmer, Habersham Central, West Rome, Cartersville, Stephens County, Peach County, Sandy Creek and Mary Persons.
In addition to the 1984 title at West Rome, ‘Big Walker’s’ 1988 Stephens County and 1998 Peach County teams both made the state finals. Chip Walker was the quarterback of the 1988 Stephens County team, which lost to Thomasville in the state championship.
Chip Walker is 46-15-0 in five seasons at Sandy Creek, his first head coaching position. |
