East Burke football coach Cogdill resigns after one season

East Burke High School principal Dr. Anna Moose on Monday via a press release announced that Cavaliers head football coach Chris Cogdill has resigned after one season.

Cogdill is taking the football head coach position at East Rutherford, just up the road from where he served as head coach at Chase from 2021-24.

East Burke and East Rutherford are both entering their second year as members of the Western Piedmont 3A/4A Conference.

“We would like to thank Coach Cogdill for his time at East Burke High School, for his commitment to student-athletes, and for continuing the Cavalier tradition,” Moose said, according to the release. “Coach Cogdill has taken on a new role professionally, and we wish him well in his future endeavors.”

Under Cogdill, East Burke finished 4-7 overall on the gridiron last fall, qualifying for the NCHSAA state playoffs for the first time since 2015. The Cavaliers lost, 13-6, at Tuscola in the first round of the 4A West bracket.

EB also finished 4-3 in WPC play as it finished in fourth place outright. It was just the fourth time that EB finished above .500 in conference since moving down from the 4A classification in 2008 when Draughn opened and EBHS’ enrollment was basically cut in half.

“East Burke is a great school full of great people, and the kids are super,” Cogdill told The Paper on Tuesday. “They may be hurting right now with me leaving, but they are wonderful kids, and they will work their absolute tail off for you. I really appreciate the opportunity I was given (at EBHS) and enjoyed going to work there every day.”

East Rutherford was undefeated WPC champions in 2025, one season after winning eight games in a second-place league finish and knocking off perennial power Reidsville on the road to advance to the third round of the postseason.

The East Rutherford job came open when Phillip Russ resigned earlier this month to take a teaching and coaching job in South Carolina.

Cogdill previously coached Chase to a 35-18 record in five seasons, starting with the spring 2021 COVID-abbreviated season.

“The timing was right in my mind because it gave me a chance to be close to home and to drive 11 miles to get to work instead of 50 miles to get to work at a school that has an outstanding football and athletic tradition,” Cogdill said. “I don’t know that the timing was great. We’re a little bit behind the game here. And I feel really bad about putting East Burke in a bind as far as football coach goes a month away from the start of the season. But it was too good an opportunity for me to pass up.”

The Cavaliers are set to bring back All-WPC and first-team All-Burke County players Carter Bennett, Jaxson Wiley, Daniel Cook, and RJ Williams plus all-county honorable mentions Luke Evans, Aiden Pyatte, Leelan Pyatte, Jesiah Rees, and Cayson Mooneyham.

Moose said that the process of hiring a new EBHS head football coach would begin immediately. The next head football coach will be the 13th all-time at EBHS but eighth since 2009, as no Cavs coach has completed five full seasons on the job since Mike Biggerstaff from 2002-09.

EB opens the preseason with an Aug. 7 scrimmage at Ashe County before facing Owen in the 16th annual Burke County Jamboree hosted by Patton on Aug. 14. The Cavs travel to nonconference West Iredell on Aug. 21 to start the regular season.