Former UGA player Warner dies; high school coach of LeCounte, McMillan

Kirk Warner, shown in 2014, was a standout tight end at Georgia and the high school coach for NFL players Richard LeCounte and Raekwan McMillan.

Credit: Dawg Nation

Credit: Dawg Nation

Kirk Warner, shown in 2014, was a standout tight end at Georgia and the high school coach for NFL players Richard LeCounte and Raekwan McMillan.

Kirk Warner, a former Georgia tight end and the football coach at Liberty County High School in South Georgia since 2002, died of cancer Thursday.

Warner was the high school coach of NFL players Raekwon McMillan, an All-American at Ohio State, and Richard LeCounte, a star safety at Georgia.

Warner’s record in 20 seasons at Liberty County’s coach was 106-103, with region titles in 2016, 2017 and 2021. The 2016 team, which featured LeCounte, was the first region champion in school history. In 2021, he was one of only nine active GHSA football head coaches with 20 years of service at the same school.

Warner had 50 receptions for 733 yards and four touchdowns in his college career. He had a team-leading 30 receptions for 404 yards as a senior on Georgia’s 1989 team, the first under coach Ray Goff.

Warner was an outstanding football and basketball player at Bleckley County.

A GoFundMe page was established last month for Warner’s wife, Kimberly. It said that Warner was suffering from angiosarcoma. According to the Mayo clinic, this is a rare cancer that forms in the lining of the blood vessels and lymph vessels.