Former NSM, Arab head coach has been the offensive coordinator at his alma mater since 2020

Story by Jason Bowen

The Pisgah football program acted quickly Thursday to fill its vacant head- coaching position with one of its own.

After Luke Pruitt accepted the head-coaching position at Boaz High School Thursday morning, Pisgah principal Jamie Darwin confirmed to the Sentinel that offensive coordinator Adam Gilbert has been promoted to fill the school’s head football coach role.

Gilbert, a 2001 PHS graduate, was the Eagles’ offensive coordinator the past five seasons. He is the fourth Pisgah alum to serve as the school’s head coach, joining a list that includes Freddie Tidmore (1987-94), Terry Kenimer (2005-12) and Shawn Peek (2013-14).

“I’m excited about it and looking forward to it,” said Gilbert, who was the Alabama Football Coaches Association’s 2024 Class 2A Assistant Coach of the Year. “When I came back here, I was happy being the offensive coordinator here for Coach Pruitt and calling plays the rest of my life. After Coach Pruitt told me he might possibly be leaving, I went to Mr. Darwin’s office and let him know that I wanted the job if (Pruitt) did leave.”

Pruitt was the Eagles head coach from 2018-24, going 52-32 with six playoff appearances. Over the past four seasons, Pisgah went 41-11 with two Class 2A Region 7 championships, three state quarterfinal appearances and one state semifinal appearance. Gilbert lauded Pruitt from turning the program into a consistent winner and said his job is to keep Pisgah moving forward.

“Coach Pruitt laid a great foundation that we to continue to build on,” Gilbert said. “There’s high expectations here now, credit to Coach Pruitt, and the expectations don’t change.” 

Elevating Gilbert to the head-coaching position was a “natural fit,” Darwin said.

“The No. 1 thing about Adam is his work ethic, whether it’s the class room or football or his family farm,” Darwin said. “He’s going to pour 100% into anything he does and he will do that with our football program. We all hated to see Coach Pruitt go, but it’s a blessing that we had Adam to step right in. I wanted it to be a smooth transition (during this coaching change) and I don’t think it could be any smoother. They kids are familiar with him and know what he expects from them and know what to expect from him.”

Gilbert was an all-state tight end for the Eagles in 2000, the same season in which he helped Pisgah reach the Class 2A state championship game. He played collegiately at Cumberland University and served assistant coaching roles at Pisgah and Buckhorn before becoming North Sand Mountain’s head coach in 2010, starting a four-year tenure that saw the Bison go 30-14, reach the playoffs three times and record the program’s first playoff victory. Gilbert was the head coach at Arab from 2014-17, going 16-26 with two playoff appearances. 

Gilbert was Scottsboro’s offensive coordinator under then SHS head coach Don Jacobs from 2018-19 before coming to Pisgah in that same role in 2020. Gilbert’s offenses have averaged 40.3 points per game over the past three seasons, seasons in which the Eagles went 34-7 with two state semifinal final appearances and three state quarterfinal appearances. Pisgah’s 2023 offense set a program record with 652 points scored in 14 games (46.5 per game).

Gilbert said coaching with Pruitt was “a perfect marriage” and expects his friend to fare well at Boaz. Meanwhile, Pruitt expects Pisgah to enjoy continued success with Gilbert at the helm.

“I know Coach Gilbert and that staff will do a great job and build on what we did,” Pruitt said. 

Gilbert said Pisgah’s coaching staff is set to remain intact, and the Eagles will begin spring practice as previously scheduled on April 28 before playing 2024 Tennessee Class 2A state champion Marion County in a spring game scrimmage May 9 in Jasper, Tennessee. 

Pisgah returns a number of starters from last season’s 11-2 team that spent the entire regular season ranked No. 1 in the ASWA’s Class 2A rankings, won the 2A Region 7 championship and advanced to the 2A state quarterfinals.

“I told the kids the plan is to keep this ship sailing on,” Gilbert said. “The expectations do not change. I have two goals: win a state championship and transform or get a new fieldhouse. Winning a state championship, that’s a big goal, a big statement to make. But we’re not running from it, we’re running toward it.”