Keon Handley Sr. takes over Fultondale football program

Fultondale, AL – The Fultondale Wildcats football program will be under new management when they step into their new stadium in 2023.  The Jefferson County program has officially named veteran coach Keon Handley Sr. the Wildcats’ 14 leader on the gridiron.  

Handley takes over for Kendric Cook who lead the Wildcats to a 1-18 record over the past two seasons including a 0-10 mark in 2022.  

The Class 4A Wildcats are currently ridding a 16 game loosing skid. 

The Fairfield native spent the 2022 season as an assistant at Pleasant Grove helping guide the Spartans to an 11-2 record and a trip to the AHSAA Class 5A semifinals.  

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His first head coaching stop was a one year stint at Selma High School where he lead the 6A Saints to a 1-9 record in 2016.  He made the move to Fairfield High in 2017 spending five seasons at the helm of his alma mater and guiding the Tigers to an overall 22-31 record including three trips to the Class 5A postseason and a 16-19 run in region play.

Handley attended Miles College, obtaining a degree in mathematics education in 2005, and served in the United States Marine Corps Reserves. He kicked off his coaching career at Fairfield as a volunteer assistant before making the move to Bessemer’s Jess Lanier High School, where he served as an assistant from 2004-2007. He then moved to Florida and coached at First Coast and Raines High Schools. In 2013 he joined the staff at St. Stanislaus College, an all-boys Catholic school in Mississippi. From there, he served as the quarterbacks coach at Long Beach High School in Mississippi before taking the Selma job in 2016.

Handley’s head coaching record currently stands at 23-40 with three playoff appearances over six seasons.