Vote: Who Is The Florida Panhandle's 2024 Football Coach Of The Year?

We give you seven candidates that definitely made a case to be the area's coach of the year

Head coach Grant Thompson adjusts a play during the Niceville South Sumter football game at Niceville. / Michael Snyder / USA TODAY NETWORK

Who was the best high school football head coach on the Florida Panhandle?

For those that don’t know, that area covers counties west of Tallahassee and we have put together a list of the top candidates around. There was plenty of worthy candidates as head coaches work long, countless hours in getting their programs ready for the 2024 season.

Vote: Who Is The 2024 Football Coach Of The Year In Florida?

Now we have a list of seven head coaches we have identified as the lead men to pick from the Panhandle region of Florida. 

SBLive voting polls are intended to be a fun way to create fan engagement and express support for your favorite high school athletes and teams. Unless expressly noted, there are no awards for winning the voting. Our primary focus is to highlight the abilities and accomplishments of all the athletes and teams included in our poll. You can vote as often as you wish and are encouraged to share our polls with others. - SBLive Sports

Here are the nominations:

Voting will end on February 1st, 2025.

Grant Thompson, Niceville

Though the Eagles didn't win a district championship, they did come one play away from playing for a district championship. Thompson's crew lost to Mosley during the regular season, sealing Niceville's ability to win a district title. It didn't matter as they made a serious run through the 2024 playoffs all the way to the state semifinals, falling a 2-point conversion away from playing for a state crown.

Kent Smith, Pace 

Now you might be wondering how a team that made a one-win improvement gets to make this list. Well, making the postseason is one of them, of course. Another is also taking into account that the team lost dual-threat quarterback Nick Simmons to transfer, but the Patriots didn't take a dip at all. Pace got better this past fall and finished at 9-1 and qualified for the Class 6A playoffs, reaching the region semifinals.

Tommy Joe Whiddon, Mosley

Though the Dolphins did fall to FSU High at the end of the season, that doesn't take away from the kind of job Joe Whiddon has done this past fall. From beating Niceville to winning a district championship, Mosley has made the jump from 6-5 to 9-1 this season.

Frank Beasley, Choctawhatchee

The 'Fighting Beasley's' continued their annual ways as they made the Class 4A state playoffs and made a serious run all the way to the region finals before losing to St. Augustine. With all the losses the Indians had from their roster a season ago, it was another impressive coaching job by Beasley and crew.

Mike Bennett, Escambia

We know the Gators had a lot of talent sprinkled along their roster, but there's always the man behind it all with the plan. Bennett guided Escambia to a 9-3 record before losing to Choctawhatchee (see above) in the playoffs. This was still an impressive coaching job by Bennett and his staff.

Jason Griffin, Arnold

Taking a team from winless to 7-4 is always something that should be recognized. That was the kind of impressive campaign Griffin led the Marlins on as they went 0-9 in 2023 to being a seven-win ball club in 2024.

Brian Watson, Jay

It's been a steady acension from where Watson started in 2022 with the Royals. From being a 3-6 team in Year 1 to this past year finishing 9-2, a six-win improvement has landed Watson in the conversation of best coaching jobs on the Florida Panhandle in 2024.

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-- Andy Villamarzo | villamarzo@scorebooklive.com | @highschoolonsi