From the Bench: Former BHS All Stater Hathaway has Heavy Indians Flavor on His Hawks Coaching Staff
By Jeff Toquinto on May 25, 2025 from Sports Blog
When Brett Hathaway left Bridgeport High School’s coaching staff and ended up taking over as the head coach at South Harrison High School in 2021, one of the additions to his staff was a familiar one to the new head man. Brett Hathaway brought along his father Jeff, who also had coached him as a youth, to the Orange and Black.
Along with dad came what Hathaway had known best. And that was the Bridgeport style of hard-nosed football that featured a run-heavy 
offense and a punishing defense that the opposition would feel the next day.
offense and a punishing defense that the opposition would feel the next day.
While Hathaway is all in on the Hawks, his staff has a very heavy Bridgeport flavor to it. In fact, it is loaded with those with ties to the Tribe and even Brett’s newest hire is a past foe of BHS and still a relatively new resident of Bridgeport.
Need proof?
Father Jeff is the offensive and defensive line coach. Old brother B.R. Hathaway focuses on defensive backs and quarterbacks. Last year’s new coach, Alex Thone, is another former Indians will work in the secondary as well, primarily with the corners.
The defensive coordinator? That would be Bridgeport teacher and multi-time state champion baseball coach Robert Shields, who Brett Hathaway played for on the BHS baseball team. Shields specializes in working with the linebackers and also helps out with running backs.
The latest addition? Former Robert C. Byrd standout lineman and long-time Eagles volunteer assistant coach Teague Wagner. Wagner, whose family recently moved to the city, will serve in a volunteer capacity with the Hawks working with the players in the trenches.
The offensive coordinator? The person calling the plays would be head coach Brett Hathaway himself.
The staff consists of the head coach and full-time assistants Jeff and B.R. Hathaway, and Shields. Thorne and Wagner are volunteer assistants.
While that may seem like a lot of Indian red filtering in with the Hawks orange, it is actually a staff built on what most good staffs end up being built on – trust.
“You can’t have a coaching staff that you don’t trust. I trust all of those guys and I can assure you if I didn’t trust them and didn’t think they would help our team be better they wouldn’t be in those positions,” said Hathaway. “I know them, and I know they can coach the kids up and handle things, like practice, when you, as the coach, have a responsibility that may take you away 
from something. That’s where trust comes in regarding things people don’t think about.
from something. That’s where trust comes in regarding things people don’t think about.
“You also have to trust their game instincts and the input they provide on the game plan each week, and I do,” he continued. “Those guys, by getting our team ready and hungry to compete, will be the key to the success so I definitely trust them.”
Even though the staff is completely about having trust than getting together a Lost Creek version of the Indians, Hathaway has brought some BHS trademarks to the South Harrison program. One of them has been prominent on offense.
Hathaway was on the last Bridgeport team that used the decades-old stick-I formation exclusively. Since his graduation, the team still runs
almost exclusively and utilizes the same blocking schemes but has seen the power pistol and single wing replace it.
almost exclusively and utilizes the same blocking schemes but has seen the power pistol and single wing replace it.
“Last year, we were all stick-I. That’s our base, but I do plan on expanding our offense from the stick-I this year,” Brett said. “Everything, regardless of the formations, will still stem from that. At the same time, we’re going to run some different things and make the offense more diverse. We have a lot of good players that need to touch the ball.”
While the defense the Hawks utilize is the 4-4, Hathaway said when going against teams playing the spread, the switch is made to the 4-3 that the Indians utilized during his time there and still use today.
“Defensively, those alignments allow us to take advantage of our strengths. With the offense, we need to add to it because we have talent we have to utilize,” he said. “We have a chance to make some noise with this team.”
Hathaway, an all-state who took the Class AAA Indians to a pair of semifinal games and then to the ‘AA’ semifinals his senior year, knows 
a thing or two about potentially good ball clubs. The Hawks certainly have the makings of that.
a thing or two about potentially good ball clubs. The Hawks certainly have the makings of that.
The team finished 8-3 last year. They lost a game that could have swung on a play or two in the first round to Bluefield. The loss was not good news. What is coming back is.
“We have eight starters returning on both sides of the ball,” he said. “We were young last year and we’re junior heavy this year. We’re young, but we have a lot of experience.”
There is a concern. It is a concern any coach, whether in Bridgeport or anywhere else, has when they see it.
“We lost some guys on the offensive line, which is going to be a focus point for us if we want to move the program ahead,” said Hathaway. “We’re pretty comfortable with who we have at the skill spots, but we’re always looking for competition to make the team even better.”
If the team is better and competes for a Class AA title this coming year, if coaching is part of the success, it will not be because they all have ties to Bridgeport. It will be because they know football and, more importantly, Brett Hathaway trusts them.
Editor's Note: Top photo shows Coach Brett Hathaway, left, with his father and assistant Coach Jeff Hathaway. Second photo is of Alex Thorne in his SHHS gear. Third photo shows the coaches, with Brett Hathaway left, on the sidelines. In the fourth image, the three coache in the middle are Brett Hathaway, Defensive Coordinator Robert Shields, and Jeff Hathaway. Bottom photo, a file photo by Ben Queen Photography, shows Hathaway talking to a player on the sidelines.
Leave a Comment
Log in or create an account to post a comment.