After three seasons as coach of the Hurricane football team, Donnie Mays is returning to his roots.
Mays said Friday he had resigned as Hurricane’s coach and has accepted the position as coach of South ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä, pending approval of the Kanawha County Board of Education at their meeting on March 3.
Mays led the Black Eagles from 2013-21 and was a South ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä assistant before that dating to 2005.
The Black Eagles won the 2008 and 2009 Class AAA titles during Mays’ time as their offensive coordinator and were named champion by the WVSSAC in 2020, the COVID-19-shortened season in which the postseason playoffs weren’t held.
“South ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä has a special place in my heart,†Mays said. “I really didn’t want to leave there the first time. I was fortunate that Hurricane had given me an opportunity.â€
South ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä went 57-43 in Mays’ first tenure as sideline boss. In addition to the 2020 title, Mays’ Black Eagles played in the 2014 state final, losing to Capital.
A resident of Mink Shoals, Mays has a daughter who is a junior at Herbert Hoover, his alma mater. Mays served three years as an assistant coach with the Huskies before moving on to the Black Eagles.
In returning to SC, Mays said his commute to work would be shorter as well.
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Under Mays, Hurricane went 27-10 and reached the Class AAA semifinals in 2022 and Class AAAA semis in 2024. Those final four appearances were the first in school history.
“We hate to see him go,†Hurricane athletic director Jeff Null said. “We’ve had a great run these last three years. Football has been fun on Friday nights.â€
Null said Hurricane would begin work to fill Mays’ spot and that he would like to have someone in place “within the next week or two.â€
Pending his approval at South ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä, Mays would replace Dustin Resler, who resigned last week after the Black Eagles went 0-20 in two seasons under his direction. South ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä was 1-9 the year before that in its lone campaign under Carl Lee.
News broke of Mays’ resignation on Friday when Hurricane Mayor Scott Edwards posted on his Facebook page that the coach was stepping down and included a letter of resignation from Mays.
In the letter, Mays said his resignation was effective on Wednesday. Mays thanked Edwards, Putnam County schools Superintendent John Hudson, Hurricane High School Principal Joshua Caldwell and Assistant Principal Heather Hawes and his coaching staff, as well as the community for their support of the program.
“While I am excited to pursue new opportunities in the world of football, please know that I will always cherish my time with this remarkable group,†Mays said in the letter. “I look forward to seeing all the great things you will continue to accomplish.â€
