BLYTHEWOOD, S.C. — When Ridge View began competing in varsity football, the very first quarterback calling signals for the Blazers in 1995 was Derek Howard.
He played for current Airport head coach Kirk Burnett and let the Blazers to a pair of Upper State championship games.
A former running back at Morehouse College in Atlanta, Howard had coaching stops at W.J. Keenan High School, Fairfield Central High School, Lower Richland High School and Allen University. In total, he has over 20 years of coaching experience. Part of that experience would take him back to his alma mater where from 2012-2016, he was the offensive coordinator for the Blazers.
After a four year stop in Florence as the head coach at Wilson High School, Howard is back as the head football coach at Ridge View. He replaces Perry Parks who left to become the new wide receivers coach at Charlotte.
On Wednesday, Howard talked about embracing the pressure that comes with taking over a winning program, a program that he had a hand in its success. But much like the previous head coach, Howard comes in with a little bit of swagger, confident that he will be able continue the winning tradition in front of many fans who cheered for him as a quarterback in the school's infancy.