Justin Cruse hired as Dresden football coach, leaves Ripley after seven seasons

Justin Cruse is heading to Dresden football after spending the past seven seasons at Ripley.

Cruse replaces Keith Hodge, who resigned to take over at McKenzie after two seasons with the Lions. The Lions went 13-1 in 2023 and lost to McKenzie in the TSSAA Class 1A semifinals.

Cruse was 36-46 at Ripley and reached the second round of the playoffs each of the last six years and advanced to the TSSAA Class 3A quarterfinals in 2020.

Ripley went 7-5 in 2023 before losing to Covington, 38-6, in the state second round. The Tigers outscored opponents, 321-256, which works out to an average of 26.7-21.3 points per game.

Cruse, a Westview graduate, spent time as the defensive coordinator at Dresden while also serving as the coach for the baseball team. Cruse also spent time as an assistant coach at Westview.

This article originally appeared on Jackson Sun: Justin Cruse leaves Ripley for Dresden football after seven seasons