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By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor

PELHAM – After three seasons with Mike Vickery, the Pelham Panthers will go in a new direction with their football program.

Pelham High School announced on Wednesday, Dec. 18 that Vickery will no longer serve as the head football coach. The administration met with members of the coaching staff and players to break the news.

“I am sincerely grateful to the Pelham community for welcoming me and my family nearly three years ago,” Vickery said in a statement posted to his personal X account. “We are so thankful for each and every student, family, teacher and coach we had the opportunity to work with and learn from.”

The school expressed its gratitude to Vickery for his three years at the helm of the program and said its goals remained to best support its student-athletes and set the program up for success in the future.

“As we begin the search for a new head coach, our goal is to identify a leader who will build upon the program’s foundation and help elevate it to new levels,” Pelham City Schools athletic director Trey Simpson said in a statement. “Pelham High School has much to offer, and we are confident in attracting a strong pool of candidates to lead our student-athletes.”

The decision comes after a 1-9 record for the Panthers in 2024, including a five-game losing streak to finish the season after their lone win over Chilton County in Week 5.

As a result, Pelham missed the playoffs for the second-straight season after reaching the postseason in four of the previous five years.

Vickery ended his time with the Panthers with a 12-20 record. Pelham’s win total decreased in each of the last four seasons, including the last three under Vickery.

Vickery took over from Tom Causey, who currently serves as the head football coach of Miller County in Georgia, and led Pelham to the second round of the playoffs in his first season with a 6-6 record, going 4-2 in region play to secure the No. 2 seed in Class 6A, Region 3.

However, the Panthers were faced with reloading in 2023 after losing multiple FBS talents and an even larger rebuild in 2024, which led to them missing the playoffs and preceded Vickery’s departure.

“We leave this program knowing we always strived to do things the right way through hard work and dedication to our student-athletes,” Vickery said. “Our goal is to provide guidance to our young people as they work to become the best version of themselves. While our long-term vision for program success will not change, we will incorporate the lessons we learn daily to have a greater impact on our students in the future. Our players and this program have a bright future and we will be cheering for each as they continue to grow.”

Pelham will begin its head coaching search immediately. The current coaching staff will continue to lead offseason activities as planned.