Rush Propst, the former Georgia high school coach who won state titles amid controversy at Colquitt County and Valdosta, is back on the sidelines in Alabama, and his first game with his new team brought new controversy.
Pell City, Propst’s new team, lost its opener to Moody 28-24, and Propst made news by throwing his headset at his son, John David Propst, on the sideline.
According to AL.com, which first chronicled it, the incident occurred on a play in which Moody was flagged for a late hit out of bounds. John David Propst, a sophomore wide receiver, reportedly was about to join the fray when coach Propst objected, throwing his headset at him. It broke after hitting the son’s helmet.
“He knows better than to do some stupid [stuff],” Propst said, according to AL.com. “I got mad at him, but he’s mine and I’ll discipline him come Sunday, but there’s just things you can’t do, you know?”
Propst has not coached since the 2020 season at Valdosta, where he led the team to the Class 5A semifinals for just the second time in 17 years but was fired in the offseason amid the GHSA’s allegations of illegal recruiting that led to several forfeits.
Propst led Colquitt County to state titles in 2014 and 2015 but also lost his job there after the principal alleged misconduct that Propst denied. Propst once head-butted a Colquitt County player on the helmet, bloodying the coach and initially drawing a one-year suspension, which was overturned on appeal.
Originally from Alabama, Propst became nationally recognized for his time at Hoover outside of Birmingham and the MTV reality series “Two-A-Days.’’
