Why Pittsburgh target Cody Pagach embraces change at Independence as the Eagles' new QB

THOMPSON'S STATION — Independence quarterback Cody Pagach is no stranger to change and neither are the Eagles.

As a 7-year-old, he and his family moved from Los Angeles to Nashville as his parents pursued job opportunities in the South, and after his freshman year at Ensworth in 2020-21, he transferred to Independence.

The latest change for Pagach and Independence was the hiring of new coach Scott Stidham last December after the resignation of Scott Blade, who guided the Eagles to a 4-7 record. But this season, Indy will feature its fourth starting quarterback in four years.

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"I'm used to change at this point," Pagach said after Independence's scrimmage against Montgomery Bell Academy last Friday. "I don't see change as a bad thing. If I felt that way, I wouldn't have lasted in football."

The one constant for Independence has been offensive coordinator and QB coach Jeff Parker. Parker spend nine seasons as an assistant, and eventually OC, at Tennessee State before arriving at Indy in 2019.

It took a minute for Parker to recall the names of his starting quarterbacks in recent years.

"Ethan Cash was the first one for me, when I got here," Parker said. "Jaxson Campbell was next and then we had Joe (Cummings) last year."

Pagach was the backup to Cummings last season. The Eagles lost to Collierville, 44-13, in the first round of the Class 6A playoffs. But the 6-foot-3, 175-pound junior takes over an offense that has been revamped by Stidham and Parker at the same time as Pagach's recruiting heats up.

Pagach has offers from Division I schools Pittsburgh, Toledo and Western Kentucky, and he picked up a fourth offer from Miami (Ohio) on Saturday. He's also generated interest from Tennessee, Kentucky and Vanderbilt.

"What's great about him is his commitment to work," said Stidham, who takes over at Indy after spending the previous 13 seasons as coach at South Gibson. "That stood out when I got here. The kid works harder than most, but I'm about relationships and he's a great, great kid off the field."

Pagach admitted he was nervous learning his third new offense in as many years. After Stidham's hire, Pagach watched as much South Gibson film as he could, hoping to learn what to expect from his new coach.

"They ran like a Wing-T style offense and I thought, I'm I going to have to run a lot," Pagach said. "I was coming from an offense, last year, where we threw it 30 or 40 times a game."

Retaining Parker on offense helped to calm Pagach and when he met Stidham, he was completely at ease. The Eagles will still use Pagach's arm and with Power Five target Ty Lockwood at tight end, Indy could make another run at the playoffs.

"He's a true student of the game," Parker said of Pagach. "You hear that get said a lot, but in Cody's case, it's true. He's got great instincts when to throw the ball before the receiver is open. Not a lot of high school kids are at that level."

Pagach's accuracy and anticipation on throws stand out and that's why DI schools are intrigued. He's also hoping the Eagles can embrace change

"This is a playoff caliber team," he said. "I have no doubts about that."

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: TSSAA football: Independence QB Cody Pagach is no stranger to change