Regie Kennedy
BLYTHEWOOD – Blythewood’s head football coach, Reggie Kennedy, announced this week that he is leaving the Bengals’ program to take the job as head football coach and athletics director at Sumter High School. Kennedy has spent the last two seasons at Blythewood and led them to a 9-3 record this past season, which included a share of the region IV-4A title. In his first season the Bengals ended 7-7 with an appearance in the state semifinal game. With all the success and relationships created over the past two years the decision to leave Blythewood was not one that Kennedy took lightly.
“It was a tough decision to leave Blythewood,” he said.
Kennedy has 17 years of head coaching experience (131-81), including 14 years as an athletic director. Although he had only served as head coach at Blythewood, the opportunity to reestablish himself as an athletic director at a class 4A school was one he could not refuse.
“I was away from athletic director for two years and you know I really missed it,” he said.
Blythewood’s Principal Keith Price and athletic director Vince Lowry are now on the hunt for the Bengals’ next head football coach. Both options of promoting from within or hiring from outside are being considered. Lowry hopes to have the position filled in the next two weeks and he said he has been very pleased with the job Kennedy has done the last two seasons.
“When we hired Reggie we needed someone to establish stability and get the program going back in the right direction,” Lowry said. “And he definitely did that in the two years he was here. He has done an exceptional job.”
Kennedy is currently splitting time between Blythewood and Sumter, while he awaits on a ruling from the school district that could release him before his obligated date of July 1.
