New Colquitt County defensive line coach Seneric McCurdy talks with new linebackers and safties coach Phillip Hale during OTAs at the new Packers indoor practice facility Tuesday. McCurdy will tell his story in the July 20 edition of The Observer.

MOULTRIE – Ask Phillip Hale where he’s been as a high school football coach and be ready for a long answer. He’s hoping this latest stop will bring him his first big ring as a state champion.

An Arkansas native, Hale is now on the Colquitt County High defensive football staff working in an area known as the triangle. He’s reunited with Mo Dixon, Rush Propst’s defensive coordinator, from their days at North Gwinnett High School, and his most recent stop was Central Gwinnett.

“I’ll be coaching rovers, dogs and free safeties,” said Hale. “What they call a triangle. Lot of athletes. Kids here are pretty aggressive, so we have to make sure they line up correctly.”

Hale’s first coaching stint was in his home state as defensive coordinator at Dollarway High School in Pine Bluff, Ark., and in 2004 his team played for – but did not win – a state championship. Then began a long association with high schools in the Peach State. His first stop, in 2006, was at North Gwinnett High where he and Dixon worked under Bob Sphire, now the head coach at Camden County High.

That time lasted two seasons and included another run to the state championship, where North Gwinnett lost to Lowndes in 2007.

“Moved on to Texas for a year,” said Hale. He was defensive coordinator at La Marque High School in the Greater Houston area. “My wife didn’t like it, didn’t like the hurricanes. We came back to Georgia and I ended up being defensive coordinator at Shiloh High School for two years.”

From there, Hale went to his first of two stints at Archer High School as defensive backs coach. The place, though, that allowed him to work with some familiar names in high school football was Peachtree Ridge.

“I was defensive coordinator at Peachtree Ridge for three years,” said Hale. “Had some pretty good athletes, Nigel Warrior (starting safety for the Tennessee Volunteers and cousin of Georgia’s J.R. Reed), Deangelo Gibbs (plays for Georgia), Breon Dixon (plays for Nebraska), guys you saw in the state championship a couple of years ago (with Grayson).”

Hale returned to Archer for one more season, that being the 2016 campaign, then it was on to the defensive coordinator’s role at Central Gwinnett.

“I had talked to coach Propst the previous year,” said Hale. “My wife wasn’t ready. It wasn’t a good move at that time.”

But in the offseason after 2017, Hale heard of a possible opening on the Packer staff for 2018. The time was now right to be in Moultrie.

“Got to see a lot of different programs,” said Hale. “The move to Texas was an eye-opener. Being with coach Sphire in North Gwinnett opened my eyes a lot, too. It showed me there are a lot of ways to do it and do it good. The big thing was getting with Bob Sphire at North Gwinnett. Coming to a big program like Colquitt’s the same thing. You get an idea of what it takes for a big program to keep moving and keep being successful.

“I don’t have the big one yet,” he said about the patch that’s bigger than the one for runner-up.

“Take advantage of each day,” said Hale about his message to young football players. “Don’t waste any snaps. You just don’t know. It’s not guaranteed, so you have to go at it aggressively every snap. Use what God gave you to the fullest.”

And Hale certainly feels like a Packer, for it didn’t take long for him to experience their reputation. First, though, he said this is an intense program and understands why Propst is considered perhaps the best there is in high school football.

“That’s not me blowing smoke,” he said. “It’s a great program.”

At the first 7-on-7 tournament at Auburn, Hale said he learned that, since they win so much, not many people outside of Colquitt like the Packers.

“‘I see what’s going on. That’s why you are Colquitt. I understand what it is to be a Packer.’

“But it’s a top-notch program run by a top-notch head coach,” said Hale. “I’m glad to be here. Defensively we can be lights out. If we tackle soundly, this can be a pretty good defense.”