Photo by Kamp Fender.
Matthew Forester was named the Briarwood Christian School head football coach Dec. 26. He played football at Briarwood and has coached there for the past 13 years, including the last eight as defensive coordinator.
In its first search for a head football coach in 30 years, Briarwood Christian School settled on a man that has spent half of that span involved with the Lions program.
On Wednesday, Dec. 26, Briarwood Christian School superintendent Stephen Steiner announced Matthew Forester as the new varsity head football coach. Forester takes over for Fred Yancey, who retired in November after 29 seasons leading the program.
"I'm humbled, I'm honored that I get to follow in his footsteps now to be the next head coach of Briarwood," Forester said. "What a pleasure it is."
Forester excelled as a linebacker at Briarwood in the late 1990s and has coached at Briarwood for the last 13 years, including the past eight as defensive coordinator.
“I’m proud to have coached Matthew, thankful to have coached with him, and now, I’m excited that Coach Matthew Forester has been selected to lead the Lions as our new head coach,” Yancey said in a release.
Forester was selected from a pool of candidates spanning across at least 10 states in a search led by Director of Athletics Jay Mathews along with a vetting team. Mathews said Forester “excels” at connecting with the student-athletes he is charged with coaching.
“I watched Coach Forester coach junior high track athletes last spring,” Mathews recalled. “His love and passion for those seventh- and eighth-grade students are symbolic of what makes coach Forester great. In his mind, every coaching opportunity matters. He was coaching those young athletes as hard as he could, no different than if it were a football state championship game.”
Forester knows a thing or two about football state championship games, having played and coached in them in his time at Briarwood. He capped a stellar high school playing career by helping lead Briarwood to the Class 3A state championship in 1998. During that season, Forester set a state single-season record that still stands today, making 285 tackles on the year. He also went on to be a three-year starter at Samford University.
The performance of Briarwood’s defense over the last three years has been particularly strong. During that time, the Lions have yielded just over 11 points per game and put together a 35-6 record. Briarwood advanced to the 5A state title game in 2017, coming just a few plays shy of a perfect season.
He was named the Alabama Football Coaches Association Class 5A Assistant Coach of the Year in 2017.
Members of the Briarwood vetting team included Arkansas offensive coordinator Joe Craddock, former South Alabama head coach Joey Jones, former Auburn quarterback Barrett Trotter, former Clay-Chalkville coach Jerry Hood, Mountain Brook coach Chris Yeager, former Vestavia Hills assistant Bruce Evans and former Alabama player Tim Castille.
"He is a perfect fit, not only because he is a great football coach, but he fits the mold at Briarwood in every way. The Briarwood football program will be in good hands," Jones said.
Forester is expected to begin “evaluating and assigning” Briarwood’s coaching staff in the junior high and high school ranks, with the possibility of one or two additional hires to round out the staff.
"It's a really exciting time to be at Briarwood," Forester said. "I can't wait for what the future holds. I can't wait for the coaches we're going to get added to our staff, can't wait to be investing in young men's lives. And ultimately I can't wait to be honoring the Lord in that we do."
