According to Gary Harris of The Gary Harris Show and Sports Director for WVUA23, Tuscaloosa Academy had relieved former Crimson Tide and Cincinnati Bengals defensive lineman John Copeland of his football head coaching duties. Athletic Director, Todd Bradford will take over as interim head coach for 2020.

Copeland became head coach at TA in 2019 and was relieved of his duties just as the 2020 fall camp was scheduled to get underway. The AHSAA had made the decision to allow fall football practice to officially start on July 27 with an acclimation period. He was a member of the Knights coaching staff for 12 years prior to taking the head coaching role.

The Knights finished 2019 with an 8-4 record and lost in the semifinals of the AISA Class AAA football playoffs to the Glenwood Gators.

Copeland was an All-American and a national champion in 1992 with the Crimson Tide. He left the Capstone and was drafted fifth overall by the Cincinnati Bengals. He played eight years in the NFL with the Bengals, tallying 318 tackles, 24 sacks, eight forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries.

Copeland joined Inside The Locker Room recently to talk to Wimp and Barry Sanderson about how he was preparing for the 2020 season while dealing with the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic.

Bradford has coached high school football in three separate seasons and holds a career record of 7-24, spending one year at Lowndes Academy and two seasons at Kingwood Christian. He has been the athletic director at Tuscaloosa Academy for a little over one year.

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