Ben Lippen football coach leaving to be assistant for Upstate powerhouse
Dustin Curtis continues to fill his staff with the Dorman High School football program, and one of them is a head coach from the Midlands.
Ben Lippen football coach Stephen Cagle is leaving the Falcons program after one season to join Curtis at the Upstate high school as the Cavaliers’ offensive coordinator. Curtis was named Dorman’s new coach in December after a successful stint at A.C. Flora, which included the school’s first state championship in 2020.
“I love Ben Lippen. It is a really special place and very special people,” Cagle told The State on Monday. “But the reason, I am going it is not because it is Dorman. It is my relationship with coach Curtis. He has invested in my life for a long time. So, when someone like that calls and offers you a job, you got to sit and pray about that one.”
Cagle and Curtis have a history together. Stephen’s father, Mark Cagle, was an assistant coach at Lexington when Curtis was a player. Then Curtis was Stephen Cagle’s position coach during his senior year at AC Flora.
Cagle was the 2011 Class 3A Player of the Year and was a North-South selection during his senior season at A.C. Flora before playing at Charleston Southern.
Cagle will finish out the year at Ben Lippen and drive a couple times a week to Dorman. He will teach a couple classes at Dorman and also assist with the football class.
The 28-year-old Cagle was the youngest coach in the Midlands when he was hired last February. He spent four years as an assistant for Dean Howell at White Knoll High School and was the Timberwolves’ offensive coordinator for three seasons before landing at Ben Lippen.
The Falcons went 1-10 this year and lost in the first round of the playoffs to SCISA Class 3A runner-up Trinity Collegiate.
Cagle’s departure means there are five openings in the Midlands with the others AC Flora, Airport Dreher and Newberry.
SC High School Football Openings
School — Former Coach — New Coach
AC Flora — Dustin Curtis— TBA
Airport — Kirk Burnett — TBA
Bamberg-Ehrhardt — Robert Williams — Corey Crosby
Batesburg-Leesville — Gary Adams — Gene Cathcart
Ben Lippen — Stephen Cagle — TBA
Bluffton — John Houpt— Hayden Gregory
Boiling Springs — Rick Tate — Matt Reel
Dorman — Dave Guttshall — Dustin Curtis
Dreher — Treigh Sullivan — TBA
Hilton Head Prep — Dave Adams — TBA
Lewisville — Will Mitchell — Leon Boulware
Newberry — Phil Strickland — TBA
North Augusta — Jim Bob Bryant — TBA
North Myrtle Beach — Matt Reel — TBA
Oceanside Collegiate — Joe Call — TBA
Stall — Joe Bessinger — Benjamin Lailson
Travelers Rest — Ray Gould — TBA
This story was originally published January 24, 2022 at 3:40 PM.
