Theodore High School’s head football coach was a notable absence at last week’s Mobile County High School Football Media Days at Ladd-Peebles Stadium, with Principal Chip Minton stepping to the podium in his place as questions swirled about an assault case involving the coach and members of his family.
“I’m not supposed to be here, but Coach Collier is not feeling well and we have to follow protocol and that’s why he’s not here today,” Minton told reporters gathered for the annual preseason event, where coaches from around the county traditionally preview their programs ahead of the fall season.
Eric Collier, Theodore’s head coach, was one of four people charged with third-degree misdemeanor assault stemming from an incident on May 8 in Bayou La Batre. According to a release issued by the Bayou La Batre Police Department after the incident, those charged were identified as Wayne Eric Collier Sr., Wayne Eric Collier Jr., Shawn Jerome Collier and Hayden Aaron Collier. Investigators described the confrontation in their report as a “premeditated attack.”
Collier was placed on administrative leave shortly after his arrest, but he returned to his coaching duties roughly a week later. He has remained in charge of the Theodore program throughout the summer, overseeing workouts as the Bobcats prepare for the upcoming season.
When pressed on Collier’s status heading into the fall, Minton was direct in his support. “He’s the football coach at Theodore High School,” he said, before turning the conversation toward the team and the community around it.
“There are distractions everywhere and with every program and you’ve been around it, we’ve all been around it a long time,” Minton said. “[The players] come to work every day, they don’t get into distractions. We’ve got great kids who handle that situation every day, and they work hard every day and they’ve got one thing in mind and that’s to work to win a state championship. And I assure you when they put on that jersey they represent Theodore every day, regardless of what’s going on around them.”
Minton continued to praise the program’s culture under Collier. “The impact [Collier has] had on our players and our community has been tremendous and it’s obvious every week. They’re out there playing hard and they’re competing. They may not win every single game but I guarantee you they’re going to work very hard. So I think the impact has been tremendous if you look around at what comes out of Theodore and what is going to be on the field this year for Theodore.”
Asked again about Collier’s standing with the program, Minton said the coach’s record speaks for itself. “I think that speaks for itself … Coach Collier has always supported his kids and they’re number one for him and he gets them well prepared, and he has great coaches around to get them prepared,” Minton said. “It shows on Friday night, it shows in the hallways, what kind of program we have, and that starts at the top and it also goes with your assistant coaches. We don’t have problems out of our football team.”
Collier has built a 48-38 overall record since taking over the Theodore program, including a 10-2 season a year ago that featured a perfect 8-0 mark in Class 7A, Region 1 play. The Bobcats also finished 8-3 in both 2018 and 2019 and 6-5 in 2017, giving Theodore four consecutive winning seasons under his leadership. Before arriving at Theodore, Collier spent four seasons as head coach at Alma Bryant High School from 2004 to 2007, compiling a 10-30 record there.
Mobile County’s Media Days event draws coaches, players and reporters from schools across the county each summer to preview the coming football season, typically the first organized public appearance for many programs before fall camp begins in earnest. Collier’s absence left Theodore as one of the few county programs not represented by its own head coach at the podium this year.
As of last week’s event, the misdemeanor assault case against Collier and the three other men named in the police report remained pending, with no additional details released publicly about a court date or the case’s status moving forward. School officials have not indicated that Collier’s role with the program will change while the case proceeds.