NEWTON — Newton High School has found its next head football coach.

The school district introduced Zach Grady on Thursday as it next head football coach at a press conference at the school district’s central office.

Grady comes to Newton with an impressive resume with successful stops on the high school, college and professional levels.

“I think it was a perfect fit for me, with the group of athletes that we have here and the administration and the community support,” Grady said “It was already a successful program, it’s not a rebuild, it’s like a reload. It’s not like the program was down. Coach (Ryan) Smith did an excellent job of getting it where it is right now. So it’s my job of continuing the direction it was headed and pursue that state championship.”

Grady was most recently the head football coach at Murrah High School in Jackson, finishing his career by coach All-American Malik Dear, who signed with Mississippi State.

Grady is a native of Louisville and played on the 1995 Class 4A state championship team and played linebacker at Jackson State where he was a three-year starter. He was signed as a free agent by the San Francisco 49ers but his career was cur short by injury.

After the NFL, Grady was graduate assistant at Jackson State and eventually the defensive backs coach with the Tiger. In 2006, Grady was the defensive coordinator at Columbus before he coached for 10 years at Murrah.

It was Grady’s array of experience that Newton Athletics Director Darrin Gray said made him a steal for the Tigers.

“I just feel like he can bring a lot to the table,” Gray said. “All the kids want to get to that elite level and that’s playing pro football. He can tell the kids what characteristics you need to do to get to that next level. Most kids in Mississippi don’t have that person that played at the highest level you can play at to get advice from so he can give them that expertise and that kind of sets him apart right there. We are blessed to have someone of his magnitude to coach our kids and I think he will do a really good job.”

Grady has plenty of work to do as he has to hire a full staff and get his team ready for summer drills after missing spring football. Former head coach Ryan Smith, stepped down as football coach to be head football coach at Southwestern Assemblies of God University. Many of his assistants have already taken other jobs.

“It’s going to take a lot of community involvement,” Grady said. “Football is a passionate sports. Being from Louisville and being around state championship programs, I know what goes on outside my walls has a great impact on my program. The demand and expectation of the community is everything.”

Grady did say the Tigers would be extremely busy this summer with lifting and 7-on-7 passing camps. He said he would use most of the summer to implement his offense.