Jerry Fulks is no longer a member of the high school football coaching staff at Guntersville in Alabama. He stepped down from his role as associate head coach and defensive coordinator on Monday.
The announcement comes just a few days after his arrest.
It also comes just a few days before the first game of the high school football season. The Wildcats lost a crucial piece of their coaching staff.
The Guntersville High School football team needs a new defensive coordinator.
Guntersville High School is located in northeastern, Alabama, approximately 40 south of Huntsville. It is about half way between Birmingham and Chattanooga, TN, but closer to the former than the latter.
Established in 1969, Guntersville enrolls ~525 students in Grades 9-12. The Wildcats compete in Region 7 of Class 5A as members of the Alabama High School Athletic Assocation. They claim one state championship in volleyball, boys soccer, girls basketball and track and field. The football team also won a state title in 2006.
Although Guntersville has not returned to the mountain top, it often gets close. The Wildcats do not have a losing record since 2018 with at least nine wins in each of the last six seasons. They went 11-1 in 2020, 9-2 in 2021, 9-3 in 2022, 11-2 in 2023, 9-2 in 2024 and 9-2 in 2025. Their defense was pretty dominant last season.
Guntersville allowed only two opponent to score 21 points all year during its only two losses. Six of its 11 opponents scored 14 points or less.
However, the Wildcats lost their defensive coordinator on Monday. Their first game of 2026 is scheduled for Friday.
Jerry Fulks resigned due to a public intoxication charged.
According to the police report, a man identified as Jerry Fulks approached Arab (Ala.) Police officers during a jamboree football game on Friday, Aug. 14. Fulks served as the associate head coach and defensive coordinator at Guntersville at the time.
As the story goes, he was in attendance at Arab High School’s varsity football scrimmage against Geraldine. Guntersville will play Arab in its first game of the regular season on Friday. Fulks and a group of Wildcats assistants were there to scout their opponent.
That in itself would’ve been fine. Although some high school football fans might frown at advanced scouting — no harm, no foul.
However, Fulks allegedly had a few drinks before or during the scrimmage.
Per the police report, he identified as a member of the media to Arab officers in an attempt to gain access to the sideline. The officers suspected that he was intoxicated and escorted him out of the stadium. Upon further investigation, it was determined that Fulks was indeed drunk. He was arrested for public intoxication and transported to the Marshall County Jail.
Jerry Fulks agreed to resign from his role at Guntersville on Monday after he was released on bond on Saturday morning.
“The Guntersville City Board of Education accepted Mr. Fulks’ resignation during a special-called meeting this morning. Effective today, Mr. Fulks is no longer employed by Guntersville City Schools. Because this is a personnel matter, the district will not comment further regarding the circumstances surrounding his resignation.”
The Wildcats will need to promote a new defensive coordinator before Friday. Their associate head coach is out.