Freedom High School Hires Adkins As New Football Coach

Two-time state championship winning head coach J.K. Adkins is leaving Mount Airy High School for Freedom High School in Morganton. It is a return to Burke County for Adkins, who led the Patton program in the 2008 and 2009 seasons.

The news was posted by Mount Airy’s official athletic department account on the X platform on Tuesday morning.

Adkins led the Granite Bears to consecutive 1A titles in 2022 and 2023. He leaves Mount Airy with the program having won 30-straight games.

In addition to Mount Airy and Patton, Adkins also served as the head coach for a period of time at South Iredell High School and East Wilkes High School. His career head coaching record is 122-72 overall.

The Patriots are hoping that Adkins can get them back to the dominance they displayed in the first half of the 2010s. Between 2010-2015, the Patriots had a combined overall record of 66-12-1, a similar mark to what Adkins did at Mount Airy. Freedom advanced to one regional final over that stretch: a 27-20 loss to Concord in the 2012 3A West championship.

Adkins is taking over for Justin Hawn. Freedom’s 2023 season finished at 3-7.

Story: highschoolot.com
Photo: Joel Bryant