Thank you for 27 amazing years! Jimbo Jarvis retires as Packers varsity soccer head coach

Published 1:00 pm Tuesday, April 25, 2023

MOULTRIE, Ga. — The date was April 13 and the Packers varsity soccer team had just lost 4-2 in the first round of the state tournament after going undefeated in region play and emotions were high, but not just because they lost.

With the final whistle, after 27 consecutive years, head coach Jimbo Jarvis was officially retired as one of the longest running Colquitt County High School varsity coaches in history.

As Jarvis gathered with his team in one last huddle after that final game, a reverence settled over the small crowd of athletic trainers, assistant coaches, parents and all others that were near the group.

Everyone knew this moment was special, and no one wanted to interrupt it.

The only ones who could easily hear what Jarvis was saying were the Packers, but that’s the way it needed to be. Some words aren’t meant for everyone.

After a few moments, the Packers gave one last team holler and bombarded Jarvis so quickly with a gigantic group hug that his head wasn’t visible for a moment.

Jarvis made the difficult decision to retire from coaching after accepting a position with Colquitt County High School as their Director of Choral Activities in the Fine Arts Department.

“I was delegating on both ends,” said Jarvis, referring to running both programs for the past year. “I felt like I was in the middle of balancing two huge projects. I was able to do it, but it was stressful. I didn’t want to be that person dropping the ball, or cheating one or the other (soccer coach versus choir director) or any of the kids in the middle.”

Even though stepping down was the decision Jarvis knew he wanted to make, that didn’t mean it was easy to follow through with.

“It was bittersweet,” said Jarvis. “I remember typing it and when I was done with it I knew it was the right thing, but it was still hard to hit that send button. You are talking about so many years and history. So many memories. I felt like I was closing the book on a chapter of my life.”

So, what started Jarvis down the road that created this long chapter in his life?

“Jeff Morris (Packers soccer head coach from 1996-2004) came to me time and time again and asked and asked and asked if I would coach with him,” said Jarvis. “I kept telling him I didn’t know anything and wasn’t the right person. Well one day, I must have been in a weak moment, he came to me and said he was desperate and needed someone. He said he didn’t care that I didn’t know soccer, he would teach me what I needed to know. I could start teaching conditioning and would learn from there. I said okay, I’ll do conditioning, you do soccer.”

In 1996 Jarvis became the assistant varsity coach as well as the head JV coach, which were the only two teams at Colquitt County High School at the time, having absolutely zero knowledge about the sport of soccer.

“Those first two years I absorbed as much as possible,” said Jarvis. “I learned a lot from Jeff. I went to coaching clinics and ordered VHS videos, you know, because that was before you could just go on the internet and look something up.”

One of those first athletes under Jarvis’ wing during those JV years was Colby Simpson, who is now the head coach of the Lady Packers varsity soccer.

“He was very motivational and committed,” said Simpson. “It made it a lot of fun. He took this group of boys and turned us into a team.”

“We went undefeated those first two years,” said Jarvis. “And not a lick of the credit goes to me! It was just a talented, good group of boys, and all of Jeff’s coaching.”

Over time, Jarvis slowly learned the sport and grew as a coach, and was able to add to his conditioning training.

“The more I learned about the game the more it taught me and the more I fell in love with it,” said Jarvis. “It’s a fun, fast-paced game that doesn’t stop, even when the ball goes out. I really enjoy the tactical part of soccer. Instead of having the kids just kick the ball up and have the fastest player run towards it, we started learning strategy. Get the ball on the defense and control it from the back.”

Just two years after getting his feet wet, Jarvis was asked in 1998 to help spearhead the Lady Packers soccer program.

“I didn’t even bat an eye,” said Jarvis when asked how he felt in that moment when he became, what many now consider, the grandfather to the Lady Packers program. “I was immediately like, sure, why not? Let’s tackle this next level.”

As with everything just starting out, there were some growing pains.

“They were the ugliest uniforms,” said Jarvis. “Mustard yellow. It was the closest thing I could find to gold. Plus, there were no girls’ uniforms so we had to buy boys. They had collars.”

“It was the first year having a women’s team at CCHS,” said Camille Bowden, who was on the inaugural Lady Packers soccer team and played until 2002. “Jimbo was just as anxious to learn as we were, and his commitment never wavered. He was always trying to learn how to better develop us as a team and individually. He recognized our talent and helped develop in a very short time. I enjoyed being a part of that legacy.”

And a legacy those first few years as a Lady Packers were. An essentially brand new team in one season became a contender for the state title.

“We hit the ground doing pretty well,” said Jarvis. “That first year only two teams made it into the playoffs because there were so few teams. We had tied for second place and had a run-off game with Ware County. We lost by one point and didn’t get to go to state.”

Needless to say that didn’t sit well with the Lady Packers.

“The next year we came out with a different mentality,” said Jarvis. “It was a great year. We went undefeated, were region champs and went to the second round of playoffs. We built on what was started the year before.”

Jarvis coached the Lady Packers for 14 years, with an overall record of 154-94-7.

But, the stats aren’t what’s remembered.

“Playing soccer for Coach Jarvis was a blast,” said Jodi Beth Stuckey, who played from 2001-2003 and came back to be his assistant coach for one year in 2007. “We had so much fun at games, practice, traveling on the bus, and just being a team. Coach Jarvis taught me to play the game with heart and determination.”

Whitney Pitts, who was a Lady Packer from 2002-2006, went on to play in college and also returned to be an assistant coach from 2012-2016.

“He loved us like his own and he showed that every day,” said Pitts. “He dedicated so much time to us. He was always there for guidance and encouragement in those early years of coaching for me. He had such a young family and now that I’m a mom myself, I can see just how devoted he was to the game and his team.”

In 2013 Jarvis made the switch to the Packers.

“It was a surprise,” said Jarvis, who explained he was sitting in a meeting when he found out the position was vacant and they wanted him to fill it in the same conversation. “Before that meeting I was in a position where I felt like I had plateaued and I didn’t have the desire to push myself anymore. It had already been about 15 years of coaching, and I thought I had given everything I had to give.”

After verifying the position was vacant due to the predecessor’s decision because he refused to push somebody out, Jarvis quickly jumped on the opportunity.

“I gave it about two seconds’ thought,” said Jarvis. “I think my exact words were ‘I welcome the challenge’ and I walked out of that meeting ready to dive right in. I couldn’t wait for that first meeting with the boys and to get started.”

The challenge wasn’t as difficult as Jarvis anticipated.

“I thought it was going to be harder than it was,” said Jarvis. “But, I had mentally prepared and went into that summer having gotten myself up to speed and making myself think faster paced.”

Though the transition wasn’t as rocky as he thought, there were still plenty of bumps along the way.

“We were playing against Valdosta and were up 3-0,” said Jarvis reflecting on one of his earlier games with the Packers. “With the girls, when you have a score like that you know you’ve got the game. You can sub out your entire bench and be fine. But, on the boys’ side? Oh, I learned my lesson.”

Jarvis went on to explain how this was one of the coldest games he ever coached and, as he would have done with the Lady Packers, due to what he thought was a comfortable lead, he subbed his entire bench.

“Next thing you know it’s 3-1,” said Jarvis. “I thought, okay it’s a fluke. Then, 3-2 and I’m thinking uh-oh.”

Jarvis got his starting players back up to put them back in the game, but by then their sweat had frozen and they were human popsicles.

“By the time they got ready to play again the score was 3-3,” said Jarvis. “Because they were all so cold, my guys never could get to that place from the beginning. Valdosta scored two more goals in overtime, and we lost 5-3.”

Jarvis took full responsibility for that loss during the group huddle after the game.

“You need stuff like that to teach you,” said Jarvis. I made many other mistakes, but I sure didn’t make that one again.”

Jarvis stayed with the Packers the remainder of his 11 years as a coach, adding 133-51-2 to his stats and winning three additional region championships in 2014, 2018 and 2023.

Jarvis should have had one more region win in his record.

In 2020 the Packers were undefeated and first in the region until COVID-19 put a quick end to the season after only 10 games.

“We were so excited about the future playoffs,” said Jarvis. “It was my son’s team, and so I had influenced them way back in middle school when they were all in the club together. I was able to implement things I knew I wanted them to do and by the time they reached high school they were great.”

Jarvis’ legacy ends with an overall record of 287-145-9.

In all 27 of his seasons, only two of them ended with more losses than wins.

“It’s all a collage to me,” said Jarvis. “I feel fulfilled through the relationships that have been made over the years. I can remember so many faces. It’s nice to know you’ve impacted someone to the point where as adults you still have good strong relationships because I see those same faces through town all the time and still talk to them. That’s what it’s all about.”

Those relationships Jarvis continues to mention mean just as much to those on the other side of them.

“I’m so proud to have been coached by him and now working alongside him,” said Pitts, who is also in the Fine Arts department at CCHS. “He not only taught me about the game of soccer, but he taught me about life.”

“I took his advice and applied it to my own personal life,” said Stuckey. “I learned that tackling a task in life with heart and determination proves a much more successful outcome. I take pride in my time as a Lady Packer and I am so grateful for the life lessons I’ve learned along the way”

“He helped guide me through coaching this year,” said Simpson. “If I needed something or was unsure he was a quick phone call away and would always be willing to help.”

And finally, Bowden wraps everything up perfectly.

“Thank you Jimbo for your many years of service to the CCHS soccer program.”