East Burke High School鈥檚 search for a new head football coach has come to a close with the hiring of Chris Cogdill.
East Burke principal Anna Moose announced the hiring on Tuesday. Cogdill takes over the job from Allen Wittenberg, who finished the 2024 season as interim coach at the helm for the Cavaliers after Derrick Minor resigned midseason.
Cogdill previously was the head coach at Chase High School in Rutherford County for five seasons, serving from the spring of 2021 through this past fall. Prior to that, Cogdill was an assistant coach for 19 seasons at Burns High School in Cleveland County.
鈥淚 am extremely excited about this opportunity at East Burke,鈥� Cogdill said in a press release. 鈥淓ast Burke is a great community with a storied past and excellent facilities, and I look forward to continuing this legacy and getting the Cavaliers back into the state playoffs.鈥�
East Burke鈥檚 most recent trip to the postseason came in 2015 under late head coach Tom Brown. The program has endured eight losing seasons across nine campaigns since then, going 4-3 in the spring of 2021 under Minor.
The Cavaliers went 2-8 this past fall, including a 0-2 start under Minor and a 2-6 finish under Wittenberg, who guided East Burke to a seventh-place finish in the Catawba Valley 2A Conference with a 1-6 league mark.
Cogdill is the 12th head coach in East Burke program history following Danny Williams (1974-83), Wayne Fletcher (1984-94), Curtis Threatt (1995-96), Mike Helms (1997-98), Tom Harper (1999 to 2001), Mike Biggerstaff (2002-09), Jim Ruark (2010-13), Brown (2014-16), Mark Buffamoyer (2017-19), Minor (2020-24) and Wittenberg (2024).
鈥淲e are excited to welcome Coach Cogdill as the new head coach of Cavalier football,鈥� said East Burke athletic director Chip Watts in the release. 鈥淗e embodies the passion, dedication and leadership that define our program and is committed to upholding the proud Cavalier tradition. We look forward to seeing him lead our team to new heights while honoring the legacy of Cavalier football.鈥�
Cogdill compiled a 35-18 overall record at Chase, including a 2-8 record (1-4 and fifth in the Mountain Foothills 7 1A/2A Conference) this past fall. His Trojans were 12-1 and won the MF7 championship in 2022, reaching the third round of the playoffs. That came in the middle of three straight postseason berths as Chase reached the second round in 2021 and the first round in 2023. The Trojans also were Rutherford County champions in each of those three seasons.
Cogdill鈥檚 accolades include 2022 MF7 coach of the year and the Forest City Daily Courier鈥檚 Rutherford County coach of the year in 2021 and 2022. His 2022 Chase team finished the regular season undefeated and set program records for the most wins and points scored in a season.
Also while at Chase, Cogdill coached five players who signed to play college football on scholarships. He coached three consecutive MF7 offensive players of the year, the 2021 and 2024 MF7 players of the year and the 2022 MF7 lineman of the year.
鈥淲e are thrilled to welcome Coach Cogdill to our school family as our new head football coach,鈥� Moose said in the release. 鈥淗is commitment to excellence, both on and off the field, aligns perfectly with our values. We look forward to seeing him instill high standards in our student-athletes, emphasizing discipline, teamwork and a strong work ethic.
鈥淲ith a focus on both academics and athletics, as well as a dedication to giving back to the community, we are confident that Coach Cogdill will make a lasting impact on our program and our students. We can鈥檛 wait to see the future of East Burke football under his leadership.鈥�