How Eagleville's Chad Leeman juggles coaching multiple sports, being town's mayor
Chad Leeman wears a lot of hats in Eagleville. He wouldn't have it any other way.
Leeman's juggling act includes being a teacher at Eagleville School, where he is the coach of one of the top Tennessee high school softball programs in the state. He's the middle school softball coach and the middle school football coach at Eagleville. And he also assists the high school football team on Friday nights during the season.
Oh, and he's also mayor of the small, rural town.
"He never stops," said Eagleville City Manager Hellyn Riggins. "That's why I tend to think of him as the Energizer bunny. He's always busy. He has more than a full-time job at the school, teaching and coaching several teams. He's always there for me. Sometimes we'll meet on Saturdays to talk about things happening in the city, not to mention the two meetings a month, and sometimes more than that."
Eagleville's population is less than 1,000, measuring between 890-975 in recent years.
Leeman is in his second stint as Eagleville's softball coach. He coached the Lady Eagles from 2004-18 before taking time off to focus on watching his son play baseball. He then rejoined the staff under Bridgette Sanders a couple of years later before again taking over as head coach last season when Sanders left.
"He's on the go," said Eagleville principal Tim Pedigo, who also noted Leeman drives the bus for several athletic teams and other extracurricular activities. "I don't know when he's ever home. He loves doing what he's doing. He's quite an asset here. We try to support him any way we can. He's definitely a staple in Eagleville, both at the school and in the community."
The 46-year-old Leeman can't be everywhere at once. Having a strong support staff, both on the athletic side and the political side, helps him maintain balance in his busy life.
When the middle school and high school softball teams are both playing, he is typically with the younger squad. He defers a lot of the on-field coaching for the high school team to non-faculty assistants Tommy Bain and Chris Ellis, along with non-faculty assistant Brandon Whitt and faculty assistant Kim Warbritton.
"You surround yourself with good people," said Leeman, who has helped lead Eagleville to the Class 1A state championship game three consecutive seasons, including a state title in 2022. "I've got some of the best people you could have, from assistant coaches to parents, and just people being understanding.
"It's been a good cohesion. Everybody knows what they do and what goes on. It works out where we have a system down, the girls know what's expected of them during practice, warm-ups, etc. It's a smooth machine. Coach Bain helped me in middle school, so we've been with these girls all the way through."
Leeman, who is midway through his second term as mayor, said that between meetings, answering emails and making phone calls and other duties, the position can engulf around 25 hours a week. And it's a non-paid position.
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"I don't think I would do it if they paid me. That's why I ran, to give back," said Leeman, who has no previous political experience and decided to run in order to volunteer for the community in which he has spent the past 20 years after graduating from Gallatin (1997) and attending MTSU.
He said getting through the COVID-19 pandemic was the biggest challenge he's faced as mayor. City growth is also a challenge, particularly in a county that's expanding as much as Rutherford.
"We want to control growth," Leeman said. "We want to be smart about it. It's coming, but we want to be smart in how to do it."
Eagleville's softball team was 5-2 entering Thursday's home doubleheader against Fayetteville.
This article originally appeared on Murfreesboro Daily News Journal: Eagleville softball coach Chad Leeman also town's mayor
