Citing his recruiting prowess and overall coaching experience, Southwest Mississippi Community College Board of Trustees on Tuesday night tapped into the major college ranks and hired current University of Southern Mississippi offensive line coach and Brookhaven native Tucker Peavey to lead the football program.
Peavey, who turns 51 next month, was officially introduced this morning at a press conference and begins his duties at Southwest on Jan. 1.
Peavey was hired to replace former Southwest coach Charles Anthony, who resigned in October. The Bears went 0-8 this past season.
SMCC President Dr. Steve Bishop said Peavey was selected from a field of 35 candidates, who included applicants from Texas, Arkansas and Tennessee. They ranged from the high school level to small college coaches.
“We had the search process going on for eight weeks. We were pleased and honored with the applications we had,” Bishop said. “There was a great deal of interest in this position at Southwest.”
Bishop said the search committee identified the top four candidates and brought them all to campus for interviews.
Bishop said Peavey is a coach all SMCC fans can rally around.
“Coach Peavey has great experience in recruiting,” Bishop said. “He knows this area well and is well respected as a man. Everyone I’ve spoken with who has played for him and also administrators gave a high recommendation to him as a coach and as a person. He’s a good fit for Southwest.”
Peavey was in his first season at USM this past season, serving on former Golden Eagles coach Ellis Johnson’s staff. He was in charge of recruiting south Mississippi and Louisiana high schools. The Golden Eagles bottomed out, going 0-12, and Johnson was fired after one season.
Starting in 2002, Peavey spent 10 years at Brookhaven High School, where he was head football coach and athletic director. He was the head coach at Pearl River Community College for one season before he went to Brookhaven.
Peavey’s coaching experience included two years at Louisiana-Lafayette where he was offensive line coach. He also spent time at Louisiana-Monroe and was a graduate assistant at LSU.
