JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Episcopal School of Jacksonville has produced many talented football players throughout the decades, and a big force behind that is running backs coach Charles Hunt, Sr.
"I decided to come over and see if I could help, and the rest is history," Charles Hunt, Sr. said.
The school honored the long-term coach for 40 years of coaching and developing athletes.
"When you can help kids understand life and how football relates to life and how some of the same principles can be carried over into life, then it's well worth it. Being able to work together for a common goal, those are things that go into the workplace," Charles Hunt, Sr. said.
"I think he's a really great guy. He took me under his wing my freshman year," Ershod Jasey II said.
Running back Ershod Jasey II is now a senior and said Hunt is like a father figure to him.
"There's been some times where I haven't been the best, but he's been there to yell at me and get me right," Jasey II said.
"I remember early on he would pick me up about an hour early from school on Friday and bring me for their games here. I always enjoyed that. That's one of my favorite memories," Charles Hunt, Jr. said.
Charles Hunt, Jr. was born in 1982 after his dad started coaching, and he grew up on the football field.
"When I first became the offensive coordinator and technically his boss, I was very hesitant to blur the line between father and son and OC and running backs coach, but as the years have gone on, I've gotten a lot more comfortable," Charles Hunt, Jr. said. "We've had our disagreements on the sideline as coach and assistant and then been able to move on as father and son after the game."
In the early 80s big hair and bright colors were in. For Coach Hunt, 80s shorts were also in. Fast forward four decades later, and Coach Hunt says he has no plans to retire anytime soon.
"It's something I enjoy doing, and if it's something you enjoy, it's not really work. Kids still need guidance and direction, and I think I'm still very capable of being a good example to them, being a mentor to them, caring about them, and teaching them," Charles Hunt, Sr. said.
One of the longest-tenured football coaches on the First Coast also worked with track athletes, including U.S. Olympic decathlete Garrett Scantling.