Robin Bacon stepping down as Spring Valley football coach
Robin Bacon is stepping down as Spring Valley football coach.
Bacon announced his departure as coach via social media Friday afternoon. He has been the head coach at Spring Valley since 2015 and been a coach for 32 years.
Bacon informed his players Friday of his decision.
“I have thought about it for a while,” Bacon told The State. “And one of my friends told me you never know the best time to do it. But I am at peace and I know it is right. ... And I hate it because we’ve got a really good group of kids coming back.”
Bacon will stay at Spring Valley the rest of the school year and will work to help all his seniors get into college programs. He considers that one of his biggest accomplishments — seeing his players go on to play college football and the help from the school’s guidance department in assisting with that process.
Bacon will have one more coaching duty this season as the head coach for the North squad in the Touchstone Energy Cooperatives Bowl.
“I’m excited about that,” Bacon said of the all-star game. “I’m going to have two of my players with me and it is going to special. Then, we will see what God has in store. I’m one of those people that believes God will set the path. We don’t know what the journey is.”
Bacon said he hasn’t ruled out coaching again but “right now I need a break.”
Spring Valley went 5-6 this season and lost in the first round of the Class 5A playoffs. Bacon’s best season came in 2017 when the Vikings went 11-2 and made it to the third round of the playoffs. He had only two losing seasons at SV, this year and the COVID-shortened year in 2020.
Bacon was an assistant at Spring Valley before taking over for Jerry Brown. Prior to Spring Valley, he was head coach at A.C. Flora, athletic director at Lower Richland and an assistant at his alma mater Richland Northeast.
The Spring Valley job should draw a lot of interest from in and out-of-state candidates. The school is one of the biggest in South Carolina, and has done well over the years in producing future NFL and college standouts.
SC football coach job openings
A look at openings for SC high school football jobs.
School — Former School — New Coach
- Berea — Julius Prince — TBA
- Colleton County — Kris Howell — TBA
- Conway — Carlton Terry — TBA
- Darlington — Raymond Jennings — TBA
- Georgetown — Jimmy Noonan — TBA
- Green Sea Floyds — Joey Price — TBA
- Landrum — Jason Farmer — TBA
- May River — Rodney Summers — TBA
- North Central — Tyronne Drakeford — Ryan McDonnell (interim)
- North Charleston — Devon Smalls — TBA
- Pickens — Chad Smith — TBA
- Spring Valley — Robin Bacon — TBA
- Ware Shoals — Chris Johnston — TBA
- Woodmont — Jeff Murdock — TBA
This story was originally published November 18, 2022 at 12:55 PM.
