George Quarles era begins at Webb, looks to restore Spartans’ winning tradition

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) - The Webb Spartans saw a 15-year playoff streak come to an end last season after finishing 1-9. This offseason, they responded by hiring one of the winningest coaches in the region’s history.

George Quarles is returning to the high school ranks after coaching at Furman, ETSU and Austin Peay. But in the Knoxville area, he is best known for his time at Maryville High School, where he led the Rebels to 11 state championships in an 18-year span.

Now, Quarles is looking to bring some of that championship experience to a new generation of talent at Webb.

“With Coach Quarles, there’s a big change,” Webb senior Will Overton said. “It was definitely still a great program, but it’s a different change. I think some players are excited to see what that change might be.”

Senior Brailen Robinson said Quarles’ arrival has raised the expectations for the Spartans.

“I knew about Coach Quarles before he came to Webb,” Robinson said. “So hearing that he came to Webb, it kind of flipped the switch for everybody. There’s no more excuses anymore. It’s on us now.”

For Quarles, the focus is not on what he accomplished at Maryville, but on building the current Webb team.

“We’ve never talked about the past, so they don’t care about that,” Quarles said. “They just care, you know what, what you can do for them right now.”

Quarles said his message to the Spartans has centered on doing the things that require no special ability.

“We’ve got to be great at the things that take no ability,” he said. “We can hustle and play hard. We can give great effort. And then the other thing is being willing to grow.”

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Webb will open its season Friday, August 21, at 7 p.m. on the road against Class 4A powerhouse Upperman.

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