NICEVILLE — Adron Robinson, fresh off his promotion to lead a Niceville football program that went through unprecedented hardships in 2025, is a straight-shooter.
Table the coach speak. Table the vague answers and generalities of offseason team mottos forgotten in November. Table the drama.
Once the right-hand man of two celebrated Niceville coaches, John Hicks and Grant Thompson, this is Robinson’s program now after Richard Morgan’s headline-grabbing exit in March. As expected, he’s leaned into the role quite effortlessly.
Loyalty, hard work, passion and accountability … everything he lived as a two-way star for Niceville’s state title team in 1988, he expects from his players.
“That grind is going to be real,” Robinson said about what lays ahead.
2025 was a departure from that. Robinson acknowledges it. After all, he lived the nightmare that included a season-opening loss at Lincoln, a second-half collapse versus Crestview, a rout at the hands of Choctaw that ended a 13-game winning streak in the rivalry, an overtime defeat to Tommy Joe-Whiddon-led Mosley and a heartbreaking first-round playoff exit in overtime at Ponte Vedra.
“We lost to every rival, and I can’t forget that. Nor can any of my coaches,” Robinson said. “You know, both of my coordinators played here, so I mean, we feel that on a different level.”
Come the offseason, like in 2024, there was a coaching change that stunned the area. Only this time, players didn’t transfer out. Why? Because Niceville wronged a right by promoting Robinson, who went to work immediately despite being in the midst of a district title flag football campaign.
First he filled the void of no spring game with perennial 2A powerhouse Pensacola Catholic. Then, addressing a ridiculously stacked schedule that includes Choctaw, Prattville (Alabama), Mosley, Pace and Crestview, he removed lauded Hoover (Alabama) from the regular-season finale and replaced with Dunnellon (Alabama). He also scheduled Fort Walton Beach for the Kickoff Classic, reinstituting a rivalry that the Vikings ended under Bobby Clayton.
Come practice time, Adron re-integrated a competition between the first-unit offense and defense that disappeared under Morgan. And since, he’s filled voids at the coaching levels on the offensive line and special teams.
“This is time to go to work. It’s real simple,” Robinson said. “A lot of people are down on us a little bit, and we’re gonna try to restore some of that pride.”
“We put our trust in coach Adron,” star defensive tackle Memphis Mays, who’ll be featured on the offensive line as well. “He treats us like a dad. We a big family, and that’s how we go to work, as a family. We’re ready to show people that this year.”
With that said, beginning a series covering every area football team this offseason, let’s focus on three things we learned from Niceville’s spring football campaign as summer workouts ramp up.
Offense will revisit its roots
When Morgan came in, he changed the offensive framework and took over play calling. A part of that was removing the heavy package, a staple during both Final 4 runs in 2020 and 2024. Robinson, expressing ultimate confidence in offensive coordinator Brooks Perry, will return the heavy package with an offense led by junior quarterback Deagan McCoy and sophomore Jakobe Gilyard that looks to be multi-faceted behind an offensive line featuring returners Carter Quigg-Begho and Simon Smith.
“We have a quarterback who can sling it. And we have a running back who can it run it,” he said. “It’s pretty self-explanatory.”
Gilyard was electric his freshman season, rushing for 1,211 yards and 14 touchdowns while turning 22 catches into 350 yards and four scores. But in the five losses he averaged just 14 carries for 62 yards with four touchdowns. In the overtime loss to Mosley, with Niceville having four downs to travel 10 yards for the game-winner, Gilyard didn’t receive a single carry after McCoy was tackled for an 11-yard loss on a roll-out to the right. Those late calls epitomized Niceville’s struggles in crunch time as it went 0-4 in one-possession games.
“We’re going to get him the ball to where we win ball games,” Robinson said. “Coach Perry will get him that rock.”
“He’s a four-star for a reason,” McCoy added. “He’s got everything to offer so we have to incorporate in him in all phases of our offense.
That could result in 30-plus touches per game.
“I’m really excited to get at least 1,500 rushing yards this season and just progress in every way,” Gilyard said. “I’m ready to handle any workload they throw at me.”
As for McCoy, Robinson said “He’s really leaned into the leadership role.” While he threw for 2,011 yards and wracked up 24 touchdowns compared to 10 interceptions in his first year under center, he dealt with numerous dropped balls (especially costly versus Crestview and Mosley). He’ll have Gilyard, transfer Caleb Leonard, Malachi White and tight end Jason Leach as weapons.”
“I’m just going to be the guy that shows up every day,” McCoy said. “I’m not going to be the guy that’s slacking or taking a play off. I’m going to be that leader who everyone can look to for strength and stability.”
“I have a lot of faith in him,” Gilyard said. “We as a team have faith in Deagan.”
Niceville has addressed clear weaknesses
There’s no way to get around the elephant in the room: Special teams has become an issue in The Ville.
Robinson has seen too many missed extra points and field goals, too many timid punt returns, too many questioned two-point conversions, extra steps by punters and fortuitous bounces go against Niceville in postseason exits to simply label write them off as jitters or an anomaly. Enter coach Seth Watts, an analytical mind and Eagle alumnus who can right the ship with the help of new O-Line coach Greg Thomas.
We saw Choctaw’s special teams elevate the Big Green to a Final 4 team last year because all their best players committed to Keith Hendrix’s direction. Niceville must do the same.
Defense is Eagles’ ‘calling card’
Niceville has some dogs in Mays, Georgia Tech commitment Noah Renes, Andy Bocchino, Clay Nelson and Dom Ealy — all upperclassman. And Robinson said he’s going to cut Kody Martin loose this year, much like Thompson did during Niceville’s 2024 Final 4 run.
Is this the best Eagles defense we’ve seen in recent years? No. But is it healthier, more physical and equipped with the right leadership lacking from a crew who last year allowed a combined 183 points in its five losses? Yes.
“We got some returners, a little bit of playing experience at linebacker and defensive end. Scheme-wise, it’s been about the same. It’s pretty much high-tempo, high pressure. It changes a little bit, but that wasn’t the problem last year. It was just kind of the senior leadership wasn’t what we needed, and we got a little bit better there.”
Renes loves what he’s seeing from the front seven and the team’s chemistry so far.
“I think we’re going to have a super strong seven,” Renes said. “We have Andy and Thomas coming back in the secondary. We have Caleb, the new guy, and we have Chase, both guys that can play corner and receiver. We’re pretty legit, but I think we’ll have to rely on our front seven. Memphis playing D-tackle is going to be really good, and Dom coming off the edge, he didn’t get a lot of recognition but when you watch film he’s always there. So we got a lot of belief in our talent and leadership.”
Mays, a budding star in track and field, is set for a monster junior campaign on both sides of the ball. Last year no Eagle was more vocal than the 315-pound, 6-foot star who’ll shine one day on Saturdays.
“I feel like a bigger brother to the freshman and sophomores,” said Mays, even though he was just a sophomore last year. “I’m basically like a senior to those younger kids, and they can look to me for guidance on how to play, how to act.”
This article originally appeared on Northwest Florida Daily News: A look at Niceville football’s offseason under coach Adron Robinson
Reporting by Seth Stringer, Northwest Florida Daily News / Northwest Florida Daily News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Seth Stringer, Northwest Florida Daily News | USA TODAY Network
