Clarke Central’s David Perno, former UGA baseball coach, reveals cancer diagnosis
Clarke Central football coach and former Georgia baseball coach David Perno was diagnosed with lung and blood cancer in January and had surgery to remove two sections of his right lung in March, the coach confirmed to the AJC on Thursday.
“It has been a challenge, but I have great support and love,” Perno said in a text message.
The Athens Banner-Herald was the first to report Perno’s cancer fight.
Perno told the AJC that his pulmonary lobectomy was a seven-hour procedure that damaged his voice box and vocal cords. He could hardly talk for six weeks and has had a “nasty dry cough” for the past eight, he said.
The coach hasn’t slowed down much, though.
Perno is leading offseason workouts with the football team in the mornings and coaching his son Hayes’ baseball team in the afternoons.
“I fall out when it is over,” Perno said. “I have to completely shut down afterward. I have tremendous assistant coaches in both sports, and our AD (Jon Ward) is as good as it gets.”
Perno told the Banner-Herald that doctors say there’s a 78% chance a small spot on his lung will clear. Perno is 58. He has never smoked.
Perno was Georgia’s baseball coach from 2002 to 2013. He led the Bulldogs to three College World Series, including the program’s most recent in 2008. Perno played on Georgia’s only national championship team in 1990.
Georgia is the host this weekend for a Super Regional three-game series with Mississippi State and is the highest remaining seed among the 16 teams vying for a berth in this year’s College World Series.
Perno likes Georgia’s chances, noting that the Bulldogs are 4-0 against Mississippi State this season, all road games, though one went extra innings, the others decided by one or two runs.
“The only thing that will be a challenge for Georgia is that it’s tough to beat good SEC teams six times,” Perno said. “We had to do it in ’06 vs. South Carolina, and hopefully, they can muster that same magic.”
Georgia beat South Carolina 6-15, 11-5, 11-6 that year in Athens to advance to the World Series.
In April, Georgia baseball honored Perno at a home game with the Charley Trippi Distinguished Letterman Award, which goes to a former player for his support and commitment to the baseball program.
Perno became the football coach at Clarke Central, his alma mater, in 2016. He played on Clarke Central’s most recent state championship team as the starting fullback in 1985.
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.
