Today’s interviewee is Kennesaw Mountain coach Caleb Carmean, whose team reached the playoffs this season for the first time. Carmen is a former three-year starting quarterback for the Mustangs. He came back to his alma mater as head coach in 2018. Kennesaw Mountain plays at River Ridge on Friday.
Caleb Carmean, Kennesaw Mountain head coach
1. What does it mean for your football program to be in the playoffs for the first time? “It means a lot to our program, our school and our community. This is a program that has been working for 20 years to break through, and it’s great for this group of players and coaches to be the ones to achieve that goal.”
2. What would you want people to know about this season’s team? “This year’s team is a great mix. It starts with a great group of coaches. They have worked really hard to get us in this position. We have a great leadership council made up of nine leaders voted on by their teammates. They have done a tremendous job of guiding this team through adversity. On the field, this team plays together in all three phases. They do a great job of playing fast and with amazing effort. Back in January we decided that our goal for this year’s team would be to #BeDifferent. We wanted to be different than any team at KMHS that had come before us. We knew we would accomplish this by being different in how we worked, how we practiced, how we are in the classroom and how we are in the community. We knew that if we did this our accomplishments would also Be Different than any teams in KMHS history.”
3. Kennesaw Mountain’s school district borders some successful programs, including 2019 state champions Marietta and Harrison. What is the strategy of you and your staff to get the program where you want it? “Cobb County is a great area full of great football players and programs. I think we have a team that is full of great athletes at each grade. We have been working hard to develop players at all grades. We have worked hard to create consistency from top to bottom in the whole program. We do that by focusing and developing relationships in our program, our school and our community.”
4. You’re one of a sizeable number of head coaches who are working for their alma maters. Why were you drawn back home? “I think there is something special about being able to give back to a place that has helped shaped who I am. There are great relationships I have here, and it is great to be able to help improve our community. I think it is an asset because I am familiar with this area and I have been where our kids are, so it helps to relate. Kennesaw Mountain is a great place, and I am honored to be a small part of this community.”
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