Jamestown names football coach, but continues search for boys basketball coach

Jamestown High has its head football coach, for now. The Eagles’ boys basketball team, which galvanized the student body this winter in winning the Bay Rivers District title, is in search of one.

Eagles athletic director Ken Edwards said that Scott Lambin, an assistant with the football program the past two seasons, will serve as interim head coach for the 2022 season. He replaces Terry Smith, who resigned recently after going 1-9 during the fall 2021 season — his only one with the program.

Chris Brown, who guided Jamestown’s boys basketball team to the Class 4 state quarterfinals last season, has resigned to become the head coach at Bay Rivers District rival Smithfield. Edwards said the search for his replacement is underway.

Football

Lambin is the latest in a revolving door of eight head coaches at Jamestown in the past 10 years. The Eagles have won just 13 games in the past eight seasons, but will, at a minimum, get a jot of enthusiasm from Lambin.

An ex-Marine who worked in counter terrorism after his time in the military, Lambin, 41, has served as junior varsity football coach and athletic strength and conditioning coordinator during his two years at Jamestown. His children, daughter Jenna and son Jordan, are athletes at the school and he gives every indication of remaining involved with Eagles athletics for the long haul.

“I’m passionate, excited and motivated, and Jamestown High School is what gets me out of bed in the morning,” said Lambin, who is employed as a teachers’ aide at the school. “In a word, I’m `passionate,’ not just about Jamestown football, but the school, the parents and the students.”

Before joining the Marines, Lambin was a running back and defensive back at Geneseo (Illinois) High, where his teammate was Jared Van Acker, head coach at Grafton High from 2010-12. Both have talked about the tradition-rich small town program nurturing their love of football, and Lambin would like to instill some of that enthusiasm into Jamestown, an area power in most other sports.

A significant contribution so far was coaching the Eagles’ first junior varsity football team in more than five years. He said that 31 players dressed weekly last fall and he expects almost all to continue playing, along with almost all of the non-seniors on this year’s varsity.

“The key is consistency,” he said. “I’ve asked each kid who steps in the weight room to promise they’ll be gentlemen first, students next and football players last, and that all are accountable for their actions.

“Then we’ve got to coach them up and give them the skills to be confident in themselves and each other, and be knowledgeable and physical enough to compete on Friday nights.

“That’s my job beginning with the first game August 26 to the last game, whenever that is. Then I’ll revisit this interim tag down the road.”

Edwards said, “Scott brings a tremendous amount of enthusiasm and a passion for helping student-athletes to succeed on and off the field. His work ethic, combined with his community relations and dedication to improving our weight room, makes him an excellent addition to our athletic staff.”

Basketball

While football has struggled at Jamestown, basketball has generally thrived of late. The Eagles reached the Class 4 state final in 2017 and made it to the state quarters in Brown’s second season last winter.

But Brown was employed only as a coach at Jamestown. He said the opportunity to coach and work full-time in the building at Smithfield was too good to pass up. Smithfield has also been successful in boys basketball, reaching the 2017 Class 4 state tournament before winning the 2021 state title.

Brown has coached numerous teams deep into state tournaments, winning the VISAA Division I boys crown in 2017 with Williamsburg Christian. His Surry County girls teams reached the Class 1 state final in 2018 and ‘19.

Jamestown’s boys finished 20-5 last season, led by all-state selections Xavier Brown and Christopher Newport recruit Scott Mullin. Xavier Brown, Chris Brown’s son, signed recently with James Madison after leading the area with a 28.6 scoring average.

“I definitely enjoyed my time at Jamestown and I’d like to thank Coach Edwards and (principal) Howard Townsend,” Chris Brown said. “It was a great opportunity to be close to home and coach my son, the last of my children, in his final year of high school as he prepared for college.”