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What to know about new West Brunswick football coach Shane Handy

michael cuneo, wilmington starnews
·3 min read

For the third straight season, a different head coach will call the plays for the West Brunswick football program.

After a 1-9 finish in 2022, West Brunswick shifted courses in January when the school announced Shane Handy as its next football coach.

Handy takes over for Caleb Pardue, who left the school after one season as the head play caller to join the program at Mount Airy High School.

At 54 years old, Handy is closing in on 200 games as a football coach over a 15-year career that's seen him appear at both the high school and collegiate levels.

After a disappointing outcome last fall, the Trojans are ready for a bounce back. Here's what to know about Shane Handy, the coach prepared to make that happen.

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Veteran coach

It might be Handy's first season in Shallotte, but he's bringing years of experience to the gridiron this fall.

With a combined record of 108-71 at the high school level, Handy spent the last two seasons at Clayton High School, where he led the Comets to a 13-8 record and a state regional appearance in the spring of 2021.

A difference in coaching philosophy, Handy says, led him to step down from the role in March of 2022.

"I just had a little bit of a different philosophy on some things," he said of his decision to leave the program.

Randleman Tigers head coach Shane Handy talks with his team after their loss to Salisbury, in what will be Handy’s final game as head coach of the Randleman Tigers. Handy is leaving after 12 years at RHS to take over the head coaching position at Clayton High School.
Randleman Tigers head coach Shane Handy talks with his team after their loss to Salisbury, in what will be Handy’s final game as head coach of the Randleman Tigers. Handy is leaving after 12 years at RHS to take over the head coaching position at Clayton High School.

A Randleman native, he also spent 12 years coaching at the school, leading the Tigers to a 95-53 record.

Stops at Catawba College, Guilford College and even South Brunswick have been part of a long journey that's brought the coach to Shallottee.

History of turnarounds

Winning just four games in the past two years, West Brunswick football has seen better times. Handy, however, is no stranger to situations like these.

Before leading the Tigers to unprecedented success, the program was in a similar situation to West Brunswick.

"Randleman was in despair," he said. "It was really a mess, and I'm not sure very many people wanted (the job). I felt like it was my hometown, and some people in the community were tired of it being average. Those 12 years were really interesting, and I felt like we got the most out of the kids."

Handy finished his time at Randleman in style, going 36-4 through his final four seasons and making an eastern regional final in 2019.

While the Trojans face an uphill battle to turn things around in a competitive Mideastern Conference this fall, Handy believes his core values as a coach can help all his players.

"We want to build young men to be great fathers and great husbands," he said. "That is our goal, and if you do that, I think you'll win, and the product will be amazing."

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: What to know about new West Brunswick football coach Shane Handy