New coach, GHS taking it quarter by quarter

The Gainesville High School football team will have a new head coach in 2026.

Hurricanes’ alum Ian Scott stepped down as head coach in May due to personal reasons. GHS was 8-22 in three seasons under Scott, including a 2-8 record last season.

Despite the struggles on the field, new coach and former UF staffer Ashour Peera is optimistic based on what he has observed this summer.

Peera made an immediate impact.

“I’ve actually been pleasantly surprised,” said Peera, who took over the program in mid-June. “We’ve got a great group of kids, and the numbers consistently have been growing every week. I think the word is getting out, and what’s going on, and what we have here, and people want to be a part of it. A big part of that is what our administration has built for us, and what they’ve allowed me to do here as well. So that’s been a huge advantage for us.”

Peera said that for those who didn’t get an opportunity last year, or it didn’t go the way they thought it would go, they get a fresh start now.

“He definitely set the tone on the first day,” said senior wide receiver/defensive back Zohnray Rochelle (5’10, 182). “He preaches discipline every day…and the mindset is definitely different…I wouldn’t say it was missing. It was just that somebody had to bring it out of us. Coach P brought that fire to us, and now we’re ready to go play some football.”

“The new coach is great,” said senior athlete Zaire Francis (5’8, 182). “I feel like as a team, he’s instilled a high work ethic. We come in and we start the practice as a team, and we build. He built a camaraderie amongst us, and he’s also showed us how to build and keep working. We have a very high work ethic.”

Peera has been very pleased with the summer workouts and said the numbers were “right around 70 players every day.”

“I’m told that’s one of the highest numbers they’ve had here,” he said. “Kids crave discipline, crave structure, and we’re providing them with that. We also provide them with breakfast and lunch. They eat as a team. They can’t bring their phones in. They have to sit and talk to each other…I don’t know how the season will go, if it’ll carry over onto the field right away, but I think culturally, I think it’s improved quite a bit.”

The seniors have shown leadership with perfect attendance throughout the summer.

“I really just appreciate Coach P coming over, changing our mindsets and how we think, how we play, and how every small detail is just so important, so I really appreciate that,” said senior Byron Jones (5’7, 217), who will play running back and tight end on offense and outside linebacker on defense. “We became more of like a brotherhood than we already were.”

Offensively, GHS should be better after averaging just 11.8 points per game in 2025.

The quarterback position is still uncertain as the group learns a new offense.

“We had (rising sophomore) Calvin Comstock who played last year and had a chance to come up and play in the spring game, but he’s learning the offense just like everybody else is,” Peera said. “He’s quite a good athlete, so he can play other positions as well.”

Junior Josh McClellan will also be in the mix.

The backfield got a big boost this summer when All Area running back Javaris Gardner transferred from Eastside High School. As a sophomore, Gardner rushed for 1,183 yards (8.8 yards per carry) and 13 touchdowns with six 100-yard rushing games last year for the Rams.

Junior running back Sam Warren, who will also play linebacker, took on a larger role in the backfield this spring after averaging 12.1 yards on just nine carries as a sophomore.

Plus, they will be running behind All Area selection Trezon Richardson, who will anchor both the offensive and defensive lines.

“We’ll be more of the pro-style type (offense), but we’re still figuring out what we’re going to be heavy in,” Peera said. “We don’t know if we’re going to be heavy pass or heavy run. Probably a good balance, I would imagine, just to give opportunities and really kind of define what we’re doing.”

Peera’s son, senior linebacker Tyler Peera (5’9, 225), will help lead the middle of the defense.

He transferred from Oak Hall School. However, he did play at Buchholz his freshman year, so he’s getting acclimated to a bigger school again.

Tyler Peera was with the Eagles his sophomore and junior seasons, which ended with a Sunshine State Athletic Association (SSAA) 3A championship.

“It was really good to be on a team like that,” Tyler Peera said. “The guys that we have right now are just like the same guys we had at Oak Hall. They’re all on the same page, all trying to win. All of them are just having the same mindset every year and just trying to grind. You have that little itch to be on the field and be able to be with your brothers. So, it’s amazing.”

GHS remains in Class 4A-District 5 with Vanguard (Ocala), Lecanto and Leesburg, but Mount Dora and Lake Weir (Ocala) move in.

“We’re ready to make a statement,” said senior Zaivrin Chess (5’9, 230), who will play on both lines of scrimmage. “Last year wasn’t the best year for us, so it’s a statement year this year, especially for all the seniors. It’s our last opportunity to make something happen.”

Ashour Peera said the approach is to play quarter by quarter.

“So, if we’ve got 10 games, we’re working with a 40-quarter system,” he said. “We realize you can win three quarters and lose one and lose the game, but that’s not what we’re chasing right now. We’re chasing improvement and building the culture here, and it’s going to take us this season to do that…We want to make sure that we’re improving along the way. That’s the key for us.”

The Hurricanes open the regular season on Friday, Aug. 21, at home against Belleview.