One Midlands HS football coach removed before season began. Here’s what we know
Ray McCleod won’t be Keenan’s football coach this season after all.
The school placed McCleod on administrative leave this summer and he won’t coach the rest of the season, a Richland 1 source told The State. He still remains a teacher at the school, according to the source.
McCleod didn’t coach the Raiders in their opener Friday night and hasn’t been around the team since June, another district source told The State. Richland 1 athletic director Bob Matz said he couldn’t comment on the matter.
It wasn’t immediately known why McCleod was relieved of his football duties. Keenan athletic director Sean Gilley and Richland 1 communications spokesperson Karen York have not returned messages from The State seeking comment.
Offensive coordinator Jarrett Neely coached the team in the season opener against Dreher and will be the interim coach the rest of the season. Neely has been the team’s offensive coordinator since 2021.
Before Keenan, Neely was the running backs coach at Northwestern in Rock Hill and played colleigately at Alabama State. Keenan held on to defeat Dreher last week, 40-37, for its first season-opening win since 2021. The Raiders will play Pendleton on Friday and the game will be held at Newberry College.
“Last two years, we start off the season 0-1 and that wasn’t a good feeling for us,” Neely told The Columbia Star after the game. “And I told those guys that and we they responded.”
McCleod has been on Keenan’s football staff since 2017 and was promoted to head coach in 2021 when Gilley moved to the athletic director position. He also is the school’s wrestling coach. It’s unclear if he will coach wrestling this winter.
The Raiders made the football playoffs in each of his three seasons and won postseason games in each of the last two years. It is the first time Keenan made it to the second round of the playoffs in back-to-back years since 2013-14. Keenan moved up to 3A this year in realignment after being in 2A the last two seasons.
McCleod was 16-16 in his tenure including 7-5 in 2023, the Raiders’ first winning season since making the state championship in 2014.
Before Keenan, McCleod was at Northwestern, where he was also defensive coordinator and head wrestling coach. McCleod also was a player on Northwestern’s 1989 state championship football team and was an assistant coach for four state title runs.
McCleod is third football coach in the state who won’t finish out the season. Oceanside Collegiate coach Chad Wilkes turned in his resignation on Monday, days after the team’s season-opening loss to Irmo.
Wilkes led Oceanside to 2A championship last season, the program’s first title. The Landsharks moved up to Class 3A this season.
Earlier this month, Brent Dorn was named interim head coach at Midland Valley High School. Dorn replaces Earl Chaptman, who was arrested for a DUI and charged with domestic abuse in two seperate instances last month. The domestic violence charge was later dropped.
Chaptman still remains a teacher at Midland Valley, according to Aiken County School District.
This story was originally published August 29, 2024 at 1:10 PM.
