Warner Robins High School head coach blazing trails for Demons football
For Warner Robins High School's head football coach, it's not just about football or winning, although he's doing that, too. He's also making history.
'It's a true blessing and I don't take it for granted at all'
In 2019, The Warner Robins Demons football team made history, but the offseason celebration didn't happen on the field.
It wasn't a championship title -- instead, the storied football program hired its first African American head coach in Houston County's history since desegregation.
It's a move that's been paying off ever since.
The Demons were runners-up in the GHSA state finals three years running before they finally won it all in 2020, thanks in part to the leadership of head coach Marquis Westbrook.
"People stay in the game 15-16 years before they are offered an opportunity. I just get like it was divine and it was an opportunity for me to take it," Westbrook said.
In 2016, Westbrook joined the Demons as a Defensive Coordinator under then-head coach Mike Chastain.
Three years later when Chastain left for Jones County, Westbrook landed the lead for one of the most successful programs in the state -- an historic accomplishment he wasn't really aware of.
"I went and talked to my wife and prayed about it and said, 'I'm going to go for it.' She said, 'If you want it, you go for it,' and I did, and it was there for the taking," said Westbrook.
When you mention football on the south side of Warner Robins, you think of the great leaders who helped pave the way for 4 state titles and 6 championship game appearances between 1976 and 2004 -- names like the late Richard Fendley, Bryan Way, and Robert Davis, who Westbrook had a chance to meet a few times before he passed a year ago.
Westbrook said, "Being in Cordele growing up and seeing him through 13WMAZ, I was like, 'Wow, he was one-of-a-kind.' Just being able to sit in the same chair that he sat in and lead these men in this community, it was definitely a blessing to have met him and have known him the brief period that I did."
Westbrook recognizes the rich history, "To have that influence that still goes through these hallways and this locker room, it's a true blessing and I don't take it for granted at all."
He's working to build on it.
With a 34-4 record in the midst of his third season and hopes for more victories in the postseason, the quiet and reserved Westbrook is quick to say he's surrounded by talented players, experienced coaches, and a supportive administration, all focused on the bigger picture.
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"We want to win some games and some championships, but we want to build these young men and help them be sustainable throughout their lives and be able to have a solid foundation when they leave here so when they go out and the world, they can make something of themselves," Westbrook said.
This week, Coach Westbrook and his Demons are preparing for the opening round of the playoffs as they look begin the road back to the state championship for the 5th straight season and to defend their 2020 title.