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FAIRFIELD, Ala. (WIAT) — Fairfield High Preparatory School announced Tuesday the death of beloved head football coach, social studies teach and mentor Shepherd Skanes.
“He cared about the kids,” said Maurice Ford, the high school’s athletic director and head boys basketball coach. “He cared about Fairfield, he cared about the students, he cared about the people he was around 24/7.”
CBS 42 spoke with fellow coaches and players about the lessons they learned both on and off the field from Skanes.
“He would want you to continue to come to school, continue to work hard, concentrate on your work and just be a man, be a productive citizen,” Ford said. “That’s what he preached to the kids all the time.”
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Ford said Tuesday was a tough day at Fairfield High Preparatory School. Skanes was 57.
He had been suffering from a health issue that forced him to pull away from his coaching duties this past season.
He spoke to CBS 42 in August during the last controlled scrimmage of fall camp regarding the purpose of the game.
“To make sure that everyone knows what they’re doing, situational football, making sure that all the kids understand the aspects of the game,” Skanes said.
Ford talked about what it was like to see his dedicated colleague who wanted to be there for the students becoming ill.
“It’s hard because people didn’t see him like I saw him,” Ford said. “People didn’t see him sitting in that chair fighting until the end. He fought until the end, man. He fought it. He fought it.”
Antonio Combs, a junior quarterback, shared what he learned under “Pops” Skanes.
“One thing he’s going to tell you is keep faith in God and keep going in life,” Combs said. “You never know when the door will open up for you.”
Combs said he admired Skanes’ effort to continue to support the team, even when he wasn’t physically able to coach anymore.
Senior running back Justin Murray, who has a scholarship to Point University in Georgia, described what signing day will be like without Skanes.
“It’s going to be painful, and I know it’s going to be hard,” Murray said. “But I know he’s going to be on the side of me just watching, proud of me, watching over me play ball in college.”
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Skanes was hired in January 2022. Skanes was recognized by the Alabama High School Athletic Association as the 4A Region 4 Head Coach of the Year in 2024.
“This is something he always wanted from me, this coach of the year award,” said Timothy Perry, who is now the principal of Bessemer City High School. “But if it wasn’t for a Shepherd Skanes, there would be no Dr. Perry.”
Perry, a close friend who coached with Skanes at Carver High School and Concordia College in Selma, described an emotional phone call he had with his close friend about six weeks ago.
“He said, ‘I got it right,’” Perry said. “I said, ‘Coach, as long as you got it right with the Lord, you all right.’”
Skanes, who was also a pastor at Faith Deliverance Overflow Church, is survived by his wife and five adult children.
There will be a moment of silence during the boys basketball game at Fairfield High Preparatory School on Friday. Tipoff is at 7 p.m.
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