It took all of nine football snaps for Harmony High School to determine Nick Lippert is the right man to lead the Longhorn football program going forward.
The school removed the interim tag from Lippert, its longtime defensive coordinator under former coach Don Simon.
Lippert becomes the sixth head football coach for the school that opened in 2004.
InApril,Simonannounced he was leaving the sidelines to become the athletic director at Tohopekaliga High School. Harmony made Lippert, who came with Simon to the school in 2017, its interim coach for spring practice and the spring game, a scheduled jamboree at Mount Dora. But lightning cut the Longhorns’ half against East Ridge short and the rest of the night was canceled.
“It’s a great opportunity, and I’m excited about the big things I think we’ll be able to do,” Lippert said. “I owe a lot to Don for believing in a young kid like me and giving me a chance to show what I can do as a coach.
“We only played for a short time (in the spring game), but I get the sense we’ve got a special group of guys.
He said that Cole Allison and Sam Glosson, who were assistants last year, will be the offensive and defensive coordinators.
“It’s a good transition for [Lippert] to take over right where I left off. All the staff is staying in place and carrying on,” said Simon, “I’ve been a high school football coach for 28 years and, frankly, I’m tired. It’s time to let the younger guys take over.
“Nick has been with me for a couple of stops. He is an exceptional football coach and has earned the opportunity to run his own program.”
Lippert, 42, made the stops with Simon prior to Harmony at Southern Lee High School in North Carolina and, before that, Flanagan High School in Pembroke Pines. The Longhorns went 9-1 in the 2018 regular season and won a district title for the first time since 2007.
Lippert said fans will still be able to identify with the brand of football Harmony’s played, but with key graduation losses, like quarterback Ayden Parks and the running back tandem of Tyler Emans and Cooper Richards, some things will be tweaked.
“I still want to do some of the veer stuff we’ve done, but I do want to open up (the passing game) a bit,” he said. “We’re still going to run the ball, then throw it when we want to. Then on defense, you’ve got to stop the run.”
“Don and his entire staff were together for a long time and that’s something that created a lot of consistency in our program,” Harmony Athletic Director Dan Kerr said. “That consistency is something I would like to see continued.”
