Jolley to lead Capital City H.S. football program

Shannon Jolley talks with an official during last August's Jamboree in Columbia. Jolley was named the first head football coach at Capital City High School on Tuesday.
Shannon Jolley talks with an official during last August's Jamboree in Columbia. Jolley was named the first head football coach at Capital City High School on Tuesday.

Capital City High School has a coach to lead its football program.

Shannon Jolley will lead the Cavaliers when the school opens in the fall of 2019, Jefferson City Public Schools officials announced Tuesday.

"My family and I are honored to be a part of the new Capital City High School," Jolley said in a school district news release. "I am looking forward to assembling a new staff and building the foundation for the first ever Capital City Cavalier football program."

Jolley is currently an assistant football coach at Jefferson City High School, where he teaches physical education. He came to JCHS from Eldon High School, where he previously worked as the strength and conditioning coordinator, athletic director, physical education department chair, boys track and field head coach and football head coach.

Eldon won football district titles in 2012, '13 and '17 under Jolley. Eldon advanced to the Class 3 quarterfinals all three of those seasons.

"Jefferson City is a community rich in football tradition and history," JCPS athletic director Ehren Earleywine said in the school's news release. "The opening of a second high school is a great opportunity to grow new traditions for our students both on and off the field.

"Shannon Jolley has a proven track record as a coach, having resurrected other programs from the ground up and turned them into state contenders."

Plans are for Capital City High School to open for the fall 2019 semester with freshman and sophomore students only. For the first year, the football team will compete only at the junior varsity level. Starting in 2020, the Cavaliers are expected to play on the varsity level.

"We are incredibly excited to have coach Jolley joining our team at Capital City High School," Ben Meldrum, the future Capital City High School principal, said. "He is a high energy coach who takes a positive approach to building a sense of community between a football program and school."

Officials report they are in the process of hiring head coaches for the sports programs at the new high school, with more announcements expected in the coming months.