Bethune-Cookman reportedly has a new football coach but the administration is yet to formally announce it.
It is believed that former B-CU player and longtime college assistant Raymond Woodie will be the next Wildcats coach following since-deleted social media posts by Woodie which indicated he had taken the job.
“Grateful, thankful and blessed to announce that I will be returning to my alma mater to serve as the next head football coach at Bethune-Cookman University,” Woodie posted. “I look forward to bringing a winning culture back to the city. Winning on and off the field are my top priorities for our team. I know we have work to do, and I hope that Wildcat Nation will be behind us!”
The contract is subject to approval from the board of trustees but is expected to become official soon, The Daytona Beach News-Journal reported.
But in an interview with journalist Roland Martin, Bethune-Cookman President Lawrence Drake did not mention Woodie by name when asked whether the school had selected a coach.
“We are really excited about the candidate that we are about to hire,” said Drake.” The only thing that, you know we’re being careful about is that his contract has to be ratified by the board. But barring that, we do have a new football coach, which we’re really, really, really excited about.”
Drake, who described the coach in wating as a “great guy” and an B-CU alum, said the school desires to hold a press conference next week to reveal the new coach.
“So now that the cat is out of the bag, now we have to say, ‘okay, you know,’ but we really do want to have a formal announcement of his coming in and give him the spotlight that a new head coach does,” said Drake.
After former head coach Terry Sims was fired on Nov. 29, Bethune-Cookman conducted a month-long search before entering into an agreement in principle with Pro Football Hall of Famer Ed Reed on Dec. 27. After Reed released several videos criticizing the conditions of the school, the university declined to ratify Reed’s contract.
