Lawrence County High School has found the next head coach for its football program with the recent hiring of Benjie Merchant.

Merchant is a veteran assistant coach with a championship pedigree as he most recently served as the defensive coordinator at perennial MHSAA title contender Oak Grove.

Merchant won two state championships as an assistant to head coach Drew Causey during his time at Oak Grove. The Warriors were the 6A state champions in 2020, finishing 13-0. In 2023, the school won the first ever 7A state title awarded by the MHSAA by defeating Starkville High 33-28 in the championship game.

Prior to his time at Oak Grove, Merchant was part of another championship program at Jefferson Davis County. Hired in 2017, Merchant was part of a coaching staff that led the Jaguars to a 15-1 finish that season and a MHSAA 3A state title.

Prior to his hiring at JDC, Merchant had directed the defense at West Jones High. Merchant has also coached outside of the state during his career, spending time at Bay High in Panama City, Florida and Monroe County High in Alabama.

His first coaching experience was at Collins High, a place where the Merchant name and football are synonymous.

His father Bruce Merchant was head coach at Collins for 11 seasons and built a powerhouse 3A program that won back-to-back state titles in 2002-2003. The Tigers went a combined 28-2 over that period. Bruce Merchant came to Collins after a long run as the head coach at Pearl High earlier in his career.

Benjie Merchant won’t be the first member of his family to coach in Lawrence County, as both his uncle Doug Merchant and his father coached at the old Monticello High School in the 1970s. Doug Merchant would then go on to be head coach at Pearl High, Taylorsville, Morton, and Hattiesburg High before passing away in 2010.

Jaymie Palmer serves as athletic director at LCHS along with Candice McDuffey. Palmer says that with over 20 applicants seeking to replace former coach Jesse Anderson, the championship experience of Merchant made him stand out.

“He’s got a vision and a plan for our football program,” said Palmer. “He’s going to bring the energy and excitement that we are looking for and has coached at some great programs like West Jones, Jefferson Davis County, and Oak Grove.”

Palmer, McDuffey, and LCHS head principal Cassie Bridges saw Merchant’s hiring get unanimous approval by a 5-0 vote last week of the Lawrence County School Board.

Lawrence County went 3-7 last year. The Cougars will play in Region 7-4A again next season along with Columbia High, McComb High, Poplarville High, and South Pike.