High School Football

Ridge View assistant to take over Class A football powerhouse program

Ridge View offensive coordinator Stephen Burris will be the new head coach at Lamar High School.
Ridge View offensive coordinator Stephen Burris will be the new head coach at Lamar High School. Mr. Joshua Photo

After coming close on a few occasions, Stephen Burris will get a shot to be a head football coach.

The Ridge View assistant will be the new football coach at Lamar High School in the Pee Dee region of South Carolina. Burris replaces Josh Pierce, who left to take the job at Conway High School.

The hire was approved at Monday’s Darlington County school board meeting.

This is Burris’ first head coaching job after 16 years as an assistant. He was previously a finalist for jobs at Conway, North Myrtle Beach, Airport and Aiken.

“I’ve been blessed to be coached by and work for great men,” Burris said. “My family and I are extremely excited to join a community that values what quality football brings to the table. We look forward to adding to the great tradition that is Lamar football and Lamar High School.”

Lamar has been a Class A powerhouse for the past three decades, winning five state championships since 2002 — including three straight from 2002-04. Since 1995, Lamar has won at least eight games in a season all but two times, one of those being during the COVID-shortened 2020 season.

“Lamar checks the boxes of everything any coach would be lucky to walk into. (It’s a) dream for a first time head coach,” Burris said. “They have a foundation that a lot of Class 4A and 5A schools would love to have.”

Burris has been the offensive coordinator at Ridge View the past two seasons. The Blazers averaged 387 yards of offense per game this year and 350 yards per contest in 2021.

Before Ridge View, Burris was an assistant coach at Conway and Socastee High schools in Horry County and then at York High School. He also was at Norwich Free Academy in Connecticut from 2017-20 before returning to South Carolina.

Lamar is coming off a 9-4 season, losing to state runner-up Johnsonville in the third round of the playoffs.

SC High School Football openings

School — Former School — New Coach

  • Aiken — Olajuwon Paige — Dwayne Garrick

  • Airport — Andre Cook — TBA
  • Beaufort Academy — Mark Clifford — Nic Shuford
  • Barnwell — Dwayne Garrick — Brian Smith
  • Battery Creek — Terrance Ashe —TBA
  • Berea — Julius Prince — Drew Chisholm
  • Berkeley — Jerry Brown — Eric Lodge
  • Clover — Brian Lane — Perry Woolbright
  • Colleton County — Kris Howell — Adam Kinloch
  • Columbia — Jason Bush — TBA
  • Conway — Carlton Terry — Josh Pierce
  • Darlington — Raymond Jennings — Jamie Johnson
  • Dillon Christian — Christian Wolfe — Donell Stanley

  • Dorman — Dustin Curtis — Jake Morris
  • Eau Claire — Shaq Hilton — Demarcus Simons
  • Edisto — Preston Deaver — TBA
  • First Baptist — Johnny Waters — Jamaal Birch

  • Georgetown — Jimmy Noonan — Bradley Adams

  • Great Falls — DeMarcus Simons — TBA
  • Green Sea Floyds — Joey Price — Patrick Martin
  • Hanahan — Art Craig — Milan Turner

  • Hannah-Pamplico — Jamie Johnson — Trey Woodberry
  • Heathwood Hall — Danny Lewis — Rick Reetz
  • Hillcrest — Anthony Frate — Bennett Swygert
  • John Paul II — Chris Myers — TBA
  • Lamar — Josh Pierce — Stephen Burris
  • Landrum — Jason Farmer — Brent Bridges
  • Lexington — Perry Woolbright — Dustin Curtis
  • Mauldin — Sayre Nesmith — Andre Cook
  • May River — Rodney Summers — Richard Bonneville
  • Mullins — John Williams — TBA

  • Ninety-Six — Matthew Owings — Matthew Bennett
  • North Central — Ryan McDonnell (interim) — Daniel Sisk
  • North Charleston — Devon Smalls — TBA
  • Northwood Academy — Armando Allen — Johnny Waters
  • Orangeburg Prep — Andy Palmer — Don Shelley
  • Palmetto — Doug Shaw — Ryan Norton
  • Pickens — Chad Smith — James Reynolds
  • Pinewood Prep — J.W. Myers — DeVonte Holloman
  • Ridge-Spring Monetta — Brian Smith — TBA
  • Spring Valley — Robin Bacon — Nygel Pearson
  • Thomas Heyward — Nic Shuford — Tony McGeary

  • Walhalla — Padgett Johnson — Chris Stone
  • Ware Shoals — Chris Johnston — Chris Dodson
  • Westside — Scott Earley — Brian Lane
  • Williamsburg Academy — Don Shelley — Tyler Boyd
  • Woodmont — Jeff Murdock — Ty Sutherland
  • Woodruff — Bradley Adams — Brett Sloan
  • Wren — Jeff Tate — Anthony Frate

    • This story was originally published March 27, 2023 at 10:26 PM.

    Profile Image of Lou Bezjak
    Lou Bezjak
    The State
    (803) 771-8419
    Lou Bezjak is the High School Sports Prep Coordinator for The (Columbia) State and (Hilton Head) Island Packet. He previously worked at the Florence Morning News and had covered high school sports in South Carolina since 2002. Lou is a two-time South Carolina Sports Writer of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. Support my work with a digital subscription
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