Hype cools for Scott Earley’s second matchup against Lexington

Scott Earley loves a challenge.

Earley has made a name for himself in the South Carolina high school coaching ranks for turning around struggling programs in his 14-year career as a head coach. He did it at Myrtle Beach, Chapin, Lexington and now is on his way to doing the same at Westside High in Anderson.

Westside had some lean years and was coming off a one-win season before Earley arrived in 2014. The Rams went 8-4 last year, losing in the first round of the playoffs to York.

Westside opened this season with an impressive 40-0 win over Clover last week and received votes in this week’s statewide media poll.

“It is rewarding to go to a program that is left for dead,” Earley said this week. “It is fun for me and what I have done well. When it gets going good, I kind of get bored.”

So far, that hasn’t happened as Earley continues to rebuild the Westside program. He said getting the kids to buy into what he wanted was easy because, “the kids were tired of being the laughingstocks of 4A.”

The other things required more work such as building the team’s strength program, working on academics and convincing parents to buy into what he and his staff wanted to accomplish.

Earley’s rebuilding project takes another step on Friday as he returns to the Midlands to face Lexington, one of his former schools, for the second straight year. The game will be played at River Bluff because Lexington’s stadium renovations aren’t completed.

The two-game series between the schools was set up before Earley took the Westside job in January of 2014, and Lexington coach Josh Stepp said the contract won’t be renewed.

Both coaches, who are good friends, said this year’s matchup, doesn’t have the hype or hoopla surrounding it that last year’s did. Westside defeated Lexington 31-27.

“Any emotion the kids had was played out in last year’s game,” Stepp said. “This is just a normal game. It is not about Scott vs. Lexington or Josh vs. Scott. It is Lexington against Westside.”

Earley said he feels the same way despite the way he left Lexington. He won 21 games in his first two years at Lexington before a disappointing 3-8 mark in 2012. He resigned in March of 2013.

The 44-year-old still has some of his former coaches on staff at Lexington, and he knows a lot of the seniors on the roster.

“It wasn’t perfect for me and I wasn’t perfect for them so it worked out for everyone,” Earley said of leaving. “They got a perfect guy in there in Josh and I think he is one of the brightest offensive coaches around.”

After leaving Lexington, Earley landed at Seminole High in Florida and lasted one week before returning to the Palmetto State. He was an assistant at Lakewood High in Sumter under current Ridge View coach Perry Parks for one season.

Earley said the year as an assistant helped him recharge and get him ready to be a head coach again.

“I actually enjoyed being an assistant and not being all things to everyone,” Earley said. “That was like halftime point of my career and now I am ready for the third and fourth quarter.”

Notes: Last year’s leading tackler, linebacker Trey Mitchell (concussion) is out for the game. Lexington QB Brandon Blake (shoulder) also is out. Donny Baker, who also was injured in the preseason, will start at quarterback.

This story was originally published August 26, 2015 at 9:44 PM.