HAMLET — The newly hired head football coach at Richmond Senior High School is no stranger to its kelly green and gold, and for the last three decades, has been part of the fabric that makes up the magic, lore, success and tradition of the program.
At Tuesday’s Richmond County Board of Education meeting, Brad Denson was approved to become the 12th head coach in Richmond’s 52-season history.
Denson, who grew up in Richmond County and graduated from Richmond in 1999, was hired from a pool of candidates following the resignation of former head coach Bryan Till, who announced his stepping down on Dec. 19.
This will be Denson’s first high school head coaching job and he’ll also serve as a weight training teacher at Richmond. He’s also the first Richmond alumni to hold the position.
“Being born and raised in this community, attending school, playing and coaching here and now having the opportunity to be the head football coach really is an honor,” said Denson.
“I enjoyed coaching at the coast, but returning to Richmond County where it all started for me is when I knew this is what I wanted to be doing−getting that first taste of Friday night on the sidelines−I was hooked,” shared Denson.
Greg Williams, the program’s longtime assistant head coach, was named the interim head coach during the four-week span prior to Denson’s approval.
After seven seasons as the Raiders’ head coach (2017-2023), Till became the longest single-tenured football coach in the school’s history.
“Coach Denson was chosen from a group of competitive applicants—his passion for Richmond County football and extensive coaching experience really made him the right fit for our football program. We’re very excited to have him joining us,” said Dr. Joe Ferrell, Superintendent of Richmond County Schools.
One of the names synonymous with the Raiders’ powerhouse run through the late 1990s, Denson was the starting quarterback on the 1997 and 1998 NCHSAA 4A state championship teams.
He accumulated a perfect record during his high school career as the starting quarterback his junior and senior seasons, leading the Raiders to a 32-0 record during that time (regular and postseason).
Richmond finished the 1997 and 1998 regular seasons with 10-0 records before rolling to six straight victories in the postseason to win the school’s fifth and sixth (of seven) state championships.
Richmond and Denson defeated Douglas Byrd and Garner high schools in the 1997 and 1998 title games, respectively.
Denson, who worked on Till’s staff as the offensive coordinator and was a weight training teacher at Richmond, left education altogether following the 2021 season.
Now back in the friendly confines of Raider Stadium, Denson will try to resurrect a football program that has finished consecutive seasons with losing 5-6 overall records.
Till’s last two seasons were two of three in the Raiders’ history that were sub-.500 records. The other was 1973, Richmond’s second season.
This is a developing story. The Richmond Observer will publish a feature article on Denson as a follow-up.
