High School Football: Gulf Breeze introduces Jeff Gierke as new head football coach

Gulf Breeze has found the next man to guide its football program just three weeks after the position became available.

Jeff Gierke was introduced as the next Dolphins football head coach on Wednesday. He'll replace Bobby Clayton, who ended a successful seven-season tenure in early January to accept the same position at Fort Walton Beach High School.

Graduating from the University of West Florida in 2010 with a masters degree in Health and Physical Fitness, Gierke interviewed for the Gulf Breeze head coaching job in 2016 before it was given to Clayton. With a second chance at the position, the 39-year old from the Orlando area brings 16 years of coaching experience to the Panhandle.

"You can't help but drive by this place every time you go to the beach and I always thought this would be such a unique opportunity if it ever came open," he said. "My wife and I always said whenever this job opens, I'm going to go after it because we just love this area."

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Gierke comes from an impressive coaching lineage as his father, Bill Gierke, is Orlando's winningest football coach with more than 300 victories. Meanwhile, his late uncle, Gregg Gierke, amassed more than 500 basketball wins in the high school and college ranks.

As for Jeff Gierke, he spent the past two seasons serving as defensive coordinator at Blackman High School in Murfreesboro, Tenn..

"I'm so excited for him to be here. He's an enthusiasm, exciting, well-versed coach," Gulf Breeze High principal Danny Brothers said. "He comes from a coaching family and that means something to me as well. His expertise has been shared with schools in Florida and Tennessee and all of those experiences have him into the coach that he is today."

This is Gierke's second head coaching stint, previously recording a 14-26 record at Longwood's Lyman High School. He has spent the majority of his career on the defensive side of the ball, starting as a linebackers coach before five different stops as a defensive coordinator.

However, he will call the offensive plays for the Dolphins as plans to bring over Blackman's air raid attack. Last season, Blaze quarterback Jack Risner led Tennessee's 6A classification in passing yards and touchdowns.

Prior to his time with Blackman, Gierke served one season as a passing game coordinator and a quarterback coach at Summit High School, where he helped the Spartans capture the 2020 Class 5A Tennessee state title.

"With all of those experiences, I know I'm ready to take this on and get this school to where it wants to be and where I think could be," he said. "I don't know if I would've necessarily been ready in 2016 for that. I don't know if I would've had all these different things I've picked up along the way to get the entirely of the program to where it needs to be. ... I'm so much more prepared because of these last seven years and the different places I've been."

Gierke met with his players Wednesday morning at the Gulf Breeze High School cafeteria, stating that the team's No. 1 goal is to win the program's first-ever state playoff game.

The new head coach also preached patience as he finalizes his coaching staff and plans to relocate from Nashville by the end of the month.

"We have plenty of time to get where we need to be," Gierke said.

Patrick Bernadeau is a sports reporter for the Pensacola News Journal. He can be reached at (850) 503-3828, on Twitter @PatBernadeau or via email at pbernadeau@gannett.com.