During his time suiting up for Alabama, Sam Shade never really considered what life would be like on the sidelines. Even toward the end of his professional career, when the possibility of coaching was first brought up, he shied away from the idea.

Twenty-five years after his time with the Crimson Tide, he is back in his home state taking on his first head coaching job while mentoring the state’s top prospect.

Shade has spent more than a dozen years coaching football across all levels. After getting into coaching as a volunteer assistant at Briarwood Christian High School, he has served as an assistant at Samford, Georgia State and most recently the Cleveland Browns.

This season, the Birmingham, Ala. native will be in charge of one of the state’s top programs as he was hired in February as the head coach at Pinson Valley High School. There he will look to take over an Indians team that has captured two Alabama 6A state titles and a combined 38 wins over the past three years.