New Allatoona football coach knew it would be an ‘ideal’ job 6 years ago
Paul Carter, a Nevada native still finding his way in Georgia, was Dacula’s defensive coordinator in 2020 when he first visited Allatoona, a Cobb County school.
It was the second round of the Class 6A playoffs. Both teams had top-10 rankings. Allatoona won 31-6.
“I called my wife on the phone and told her that’s a great place,” Carter said. “It’s a place where the community obviously cares about football. They’ve got good athletes that are hard-nosed and tough. That would be an ideal place to work.”
Carter was hired this week as Allatoona’s head coach, ending the school’s three-month search.
Carter was safeties coach for Class 6A runner-up Carrollton the past three seasons. He joined Carrollton’s staff in 2023 after working as defensive coordinator at Dacula (2017-19), Lincoln County (2020) and Duluth (2020-22). He was interim head coach at Dacula and Duluth during parts of off seasons after their coaches were fired and a finalist for the permanent jobs both times.
Carter applied for the Allatoona job when program founder Casey Varner retired after the 2023 season but did not get an interview.
The work at Carrollton, under Joey King, one of the state’s most successful coaches, boosted his resume. Carrollton was 39-4 in Carter’s three seasons with two state runner-up finishes.
“Carrollton is a special place,” Carter said. “I learned lot from Coach King. The structure was one of the biggest things. That’s one of the things I’ll take wherever I go — how meetings are run, the practice structure, things being streamlined and disciplined. It’s done at a high level.”
Before coming to Georgia, Carter coached eight seasons at alma mater Carson High in Nevada and two seasons on staff at Dordt University in Iowa. Carter is a former college wrestler who was on Carrollton’s wrestling coaching staff.
Since opening in 2008, Allatoona has won four region titles and a 2015 state championship. Allatoona was 9-21 in four seasons with Brad Smith, who replaced Varner. Smith had been Loganville’s head coach for three seasons and led that school, his alma mater, to its best record in six years (9-2) in his final season there.
About the Author
Todd Holcomb covers high school sports across the state. He rejoined The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in 2025 and has worked with the AJC in varying capacities since 1985. He is a co-founder and editor of Georgia High School Football Daily.
