Strickland returns to Colquitt after successful TCC tenure

May 24—MOULTRIE — When Ryan Strickland left Colquitt County in 2015 after three years as an assistant baseball coach, he put several Packers shirts and caps in a vacuum-sealed bag.

"For the last nine years, my wife has kept asking me why I didn't throw that stuff away," Strickland said on Wednesday.

"I kept telling her, 'You never know.'"

And sure enough, on Monday the Colquitt County Board of Education acted on a recommendation from Athletic Director Cleve Edwards and hired Strickland as the sixth full-time Packer baseball coach since schools were consolidated in 1978-1979.

Strickland comes from Thomas County Central where, over the last seven seasons, he led the Yellow Jackets to a 141-86 record and four trips to the state's Elite Eight, including the last three years in a row.

His teams won at least one playoff series each season and also defeated Colquitt County six times in eight meetings.

Colquitt's head coach position had been open since Brandon Brock resigned on March 28 with the Packers owning a 10-11 record.

Colquitt County softball coach Chance Pitts finished out the season as the interim and the Packers won four of the final 10 games to finish 14-17.

"I've had some success doing this," Strickland said on Wednesday before addressing a group of players, parents and Packer fans at a "meet-and-greet" at the high school cafeteria.

"Hopefully, I can bring a work ethic and some pride in baseball back here. I'm excited to be back."

Colquitt County High Principal Chris Merritt said an extensive search had been undertaken with the intent of finding "someone who understood Packer baseball and who is a program developer and a developer of young men.

"His passion, relentlessness and attention to detail were very apparent."

Edwards said Strickland's reputation speaks for itself.

"We are fixing to get better, fixing to get Colquitt County baseball back on the map," he said of a program that has not had back-to-back winning records since the 2017 team went 17-16 and the 2018 Packers went 23-11 under Tony Kirkland.

And it was the opportunity to hone his coaching skills under Kirkland that led Strickland to Moultrie in 2012 after having been the head coach at Model High in Rome.

Strickland played baseball at Thomasville High, Darton College and Shorter University, where he earned a degree in chemistry.

He got his master's degree at Valdosta State.

After six years in Floyd County, he was ready to get back to south Georgia.

"And I wanted to go to Colquitt County because I wanted to learn from Tony," he said.

He started as a volunteer coach and worked with both the baseball and softball programs.

"Tony was good to me," he said. "I learned how to work with kids and build relationships with kids. Those three years were so valuable to my career and where I am today."

The two have remained close.

"If you were on my staff then, you had to work," said Kirkland, who retired as the Packers head coach after the 2019 season after having won 302 games in his Georgia Dugout Club Hall of Fame career. "And he never lacked work ethic. He excelled at it.

"He was energetic, a great motivator and a great, great communicator. I am so proud to have him back here."

After serving as an assistant at Thomas County Central for two seasons, he took over from previous head coach Chad Parkerson in 2018.

The traits that Kirkland saw a decade ago are the ones that helped lead to Thomas County Central's success the last seven seasons and are ones that Strickland will rely on in Moultrie.

Strickland certainly did not promise the Packer faithful a rose garden. He said work lies ahead.

"I am a worker," he said. "I've always had to out-work everybody.

"Wins and losses are not what it's about. It's about what you do on a daily basis and how you go about your business. The process of getting better is what is important. That will show up on the scoreboard at some point in time."

He added, "When we go out on the field, we are not going to wonder if we out-worked our opponent. We going to know we out-worked them."

Strickland said he and his staff, which will have at least two new assistants, including former Packer Taylor Barber, will put that ethic to use in three areas: teaching, communication and development.

"We are here to teach," he said, addressing the young players in the audience. "You are here to be taught. The process of getting better is what's important. And what you become."

Addressing the parents, he added, "Your children are going to be pushed out of their comfort zone. We are going to push them, ask a lot out of them. The training environment will be tough."

And he characterized the dugout as a classroom.

"We won't be getting on to your kids," he said. "We'll be teaching them."

And there will be, he promised them, "honest communication."

Strickland said he believes success can only be achieved by a group working diligently together. That includes coaches, players, parents and the community.

"We have got to work together," he said.

And done correctly, he added, that work will result in positively impacting young men.