But after 29 years in Huntersville high schools, Rust is venturing south to see what South Carolinafootball is all about.
On Tuesday, the former Hopewell High head coach signed a contract to teach math and coach football at 4A Rock Hill High next year. He will serve as a defensive assistant on Joe Montgomery’s Bearcats staff.
“I’m looking forward to it,” says Rust. “I think it will be a lot of fun.”
Rust resigned his head coaching post at Hopewell in January, after a six-year run in which his teams went 43-31 and reached the state playoffs every year. Hopewell has not yet hired a replacement.
Having spent the past six years as a head coach and calling the shots, Rust is intrigued by the opportunity to serve as an assistant again.
“You just have to worry about one area instead of having to worry about the whole program,” says Rust.
He will likely work either with outside linebackers or the secondary.
“I won’t have as many e-mails or calls from college coaches, so it’ll be a little more laid back,” he says. “Of course, I can’t coach laid back. So we’ll see.”
Rust proved that in his time at Hopewell. His 2007 team won the ME-CA 7 Conference title, and his Titans had a knack for beating rival North Meck, doing it five out of six times. Rust’s final Titan team was 8-5 and reached the second round of the 4AA playoffs.
Rust was an original member of Hopewell’s staff in 2001, serving as defensive coordinator during current North Meck coach Mike Bradley’s four years as head coach there. He also served in stints as chairman of the math department and head golf coach. Prior to the move to Hopewell, he coached for19 years at North Meck, including a run as Viking head coach from 1993-97. And he spent a year coaching on Davidson College’s football staff.
“The kids have played hard for me,” Rust said in January. “I don’t have any regrets.”
There will be some differences coaching in South Carolina. The state has a spring football session and requires fewer days of light practice before allowing full contact. And S.C. teams are permitted to scrimmage up to six times.
Rust is also excited about seeing if S.C. football lives up to its high reputation. He’s long heard the chatter about the state’s big games in front of big crowds in big stadiums. Rust has seen some of that in North Carolina, and football in the Tar Heel State is all he’s known.
“It’s going to be interesting to be able to compare the two, how they do things,” he says.
Rust is planning to commute the 40 miles from Huntersville. His wife, Ann, is a teacher at Bradley Middle.
Tuesday was a big day for Rust. Not only did he sign the contract in Rock Hill, he also signed his N.C. retirement papers.
Of his big day, Rust said, “It felt really good driving home this afternoon.”
