The announcement came after the Mustangs finished the season 0-10; they have lost their last 16 games dating back to last season.
“At this time, I want to let the community know I have accepted the resignation of Ted Lockerby as the head coach of the football team at Walker Valley High School,” said Walker Valley Principal Danny Coggin in a statement released Monday.
“I want to thank him for his service to our young people and the school. He is a valuable asset to our community, and he will continue in his teaching capacity,” Coggin elaborated.
Overall, Lockerby carries a 12-39 record away from his time at Walker Valley, and was responsible for the program’s first Division 4A playoff berth in 2008, going 6-5 that season and capping the regular season with one of the school’s two victories over county rival Cleveland.
That season the Mustangs played Powell in the first round of the playoffs and came close to advancing, losing the match-up 28-21.
However, the tides have turned since them. In Walker Valley’s last three seasons the program has only scrapped together three wins and has been shut out five times.
Despite this year’s record, the team saw some successes. Early in the season the Mustangs traveled to state ranked Red Bank and lost by less than a touchdown, hosted Cleveland and lost by a mere six points and exploded on Soddy-Daisy, putting up 48 in a high scoring shoot-out.
In fact, the Mustang offense has scored at least two touchdowns in seven of the last 10 games, only being held to one or less scores by playoff-bound Polk County and Bradley Central.
That being said, the Mustangs allowed nearly 400 points against them this season, nearly double what they scored.
Walker Valley has been begun to look forward to the future of its football program and will continue to evaluate the state of Mustang football and work toward identifying a coach that will help the program move into next season.
Athletic director Mike Turner stated that the open position has already generated interest among candidates and that the process will be ongoing.
