Mount Paran announced the hiring of Mike Walker to be the school’s new athletic director on Friday to replace the vacancy left in January when former head football coach and AD Mitch Jordan stepped down. Coach Jordan had been at the school since 2008 when he launched the football program. Over his 14 years as coach, Mt. Paran went 101-55 and won a pair of region champions in addition to completing a perfect 14-0 season in 2014 and winning the school’s first-ever state title.
Coach Jordan stepped down from coaching in 2021 to his role as AD and Matt Ely stepped in as head coach. While Jordan was serving as athletic director, Mt. Paran won a total of 27 state titles. Additionally, Mt. Paran won the Director’s Cup, given to the best athletic program in the classification, for the past two years.
Coach Jordan also is credited with helping Mt. Paran with numerous construction projects including the Catherine Steele Sewell Stadium and the Stephen A. Werner Athletic Complex that includes the fields for both softball and baseball. Jordan—a 1990 graduate from Darlington accepted the position at his alma mater to replace Eddie Guth.
Walker will consult with Jordan and the staff as he settles into his new role. He comes to Mt. Paran with more than 20 years of experience in athletic leadership. His most recent job was with Second Baptist School in Houston, Texas.
It has been reported that Walker will be included in the final phases of the Knox Athletic Performance Center that is being built to give Mt. Paran athletics another first class facility.
“God has abundantly blessed MPC, and I am eager to build upon the strong foundation already in place,” said Walker. “My passion is to use the power of sports to positively influence students’ lives through the pursuit of athletic excellence.”
Finding a new head coach to replace Matt Ely will be one of the first items on the agenda for Walker and the leadership at Mt. Paran.
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