GRANITE CITY – Orlando “Doc” Gooden, who was named as head football coach at Granite City High School in March, 2019, was fired after only one season on the job.
Gooden was fired as football coach in a 5-1 vote by the members of the Community Unit School District Number 9 Board of Education despite a recommendation that he be retained by GCHS principal Daren DePew.
A native of East St. Louis and a graduate of Cahokia High School, Gooden played for the Comanches, then played college football at both Missouri and Indiana State, graduating in 2006. He served as a volunteer assistant for Cahokia from 2008-2010, then as a coach for the freshman and junior varsity teams for the Comanches in 2010-2016.
After coaching youth football in Cahokia for two seasons, Gooden was hired to be the Warriors’ head coach last March, taking over for Brad Hasquin, who stepped down after one season to pursue business interests. The Warriors went 3-6 in Gooden’s only season at the helm, having gone 5-5 and qualifying for the IHSA Class 7A playoffs the season before.
The search is currently underway for a new head coach for the Warriors’ football program.
