Heathwood Hall’s Tymere Zimmerman Contributed by Shell Suber
Tymere Zimmerman has been named the head football coach at Heathwood Hall. He replaces Rick Reetz, who resigned in September after only half a season with the Highlanders.
“It’s been a long time coming,” Zimmerman said. “I’ve wanted to be a head coach for a while. When I stopped working at Presbyterian College, I did it so I could spend more time with my son. Now I get to do something I love, coaching, at a school that he is at. I get to do both of those things at the same time.”
Unlike most new head coaches, Zimmerman know what Heathwood Hall has gone through. He served as the Highlanders’ associate head coach following Reetz’s departure. He was also Heathwood Hall’s junior varsity coach. Zimmerman saw firsthand how the varsity dealt with losing Reetz and quarterback Patrick Belk, who suffered a season ending injury in a Week 1 game against Ben Lippen.
“I was talking to my mom the other day, and I was telling her that it was almost like I’ve been through so much in my life, from not getting into Clemson to losing a lot of family members, it has gotten me ready for this moment,” Zimmerman said. “Everything is not great. Everything is not perfect here. But what I’ve been through I’ve learned you have to keep fighting. You can’t stop. It’s not any different than when I first went to Newberry College. That team had an 18-game conference losing streak, and everyone was talking about how it was going to be hard to win. By my senior year we were ranked in the Top 10 in the country. This is not any different. All that stuff prepared me for the task I have ahead of me here at Heathwood.”
His experience with the current players as well as future players might help with any transition.
“That’s the beauty of it,” Zimmerman said. “That’s what it came down to for me between taking this job or taking another job somewhere else. I built relationships with those kids and they have seen how I coach. I’ve also seen how they react to coaching. I get a feel for what it’s like.
“Usually you have to go to a place and learn what is going on, but I was able to be here and know what is needed and how things can be done going forward in a positive way to get Heathwood back to the top ranking of SCISA. It’s going to take work. The kids know that. It’s going to take a lot of dedication. We look forward to the challenge.”
Zimmerman has seen the immediate reaction from the players as many have already taken to the weight room to train for next season.
There are a lot of advantages for Zimmerman. He already knows the personnel on varsity as well as the junior varsity players who may be moving up.
“I’m able to already come up with a plan for spring practice, summer practice. I can plan for some of the things we want to do during the summer,” Zimmerman said of getting the job in November. “I can come up with a weightlifting schedule for kids over Christmas break who aren’t playing a winter sport. I can also get kids, who aren’t playing a spring sport, to sign up for track.
“It’s big being able to put a picture together, especially when it comes to who can start on offense and defense. Most coaches have to wait until spring to figure it out. Having coached the junior varsity, seeing what the middle school team has, and then coaching varsity, I know who can help already.”
Heathwood Hall fans will be excited to welcome back quarterback Patrick Belk.
“We have a good connection outside of the school,” Zimmerman said of Belk. “I tell coaches that he could be one of those generational talents. It’s hard to find a kid who has the passion for the game, the love, and who puts the work in. Patrick is that kid.”
Zimmerman brings a wealth of experience with him, not only as a coach but as a high level player. He was a star wide receiver at Marlboro County and later at Newberry College. Following his playing days, Zimmerman was an assistant coach for Lexington, Marlboro County, and Lower Richland. Following his time with the Diamond Hornets, Zimmerman spent a year coaching collegiately at Presbyterian College. Following the spring season in 2021, he stepped away from coaching for a brief time before joining the Heathwood Hall staff this year.
“(Former Lower Richland head) Coach (Daryl) Page told me one time ‘during your time in coaching you will learn what to do and what not to do.’ That has stuck with me,” Zimmerman said. “I’ve learned so much from (Marlboro County head coach) Dean Boyd, (Presbyterian College head coach) Tommy Spangler, Coach Daryl Page, and coach Josh Stepp, who gave me my first coaching job at Lexington. From those experiences I learned how to build a team, learn about practice schedules, seeing how to put together a coaching staff, see how the staff gels, and different stuff like that.”
Some of the best advice Zimmerman received was from Marcus Smith, CEO of Speedway Motorsports. Before coming to Heathwood Hall, Zimmerman worked for Gucci in Charlotte. One day, he and Smith were having a conversation while walking around the store. During their hourlong talk, Smith told Zimmerman the kids needed him. He emphasized it would be good for Zimmerman to get back into coaching and that he was a good person.
“He told me I would do great by the kids and the community,” Zimmerman said. “Not knowing at that time that making that jump from then to now, it has played a major role in where I am now.
“Using all of my experiences, working at Gucci, coaching, it will all help me mold this program because there are so many kids who have a lot going on. Being here for these kids and letting them enjoy their experience with football, along with winning at the same time, that is my top goal.”
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