Matt Garriott Named Head Football Coach of Star City Bulldogs
The Star City School District has officially announced the promotion of Matt Garriott to Head Football Coach of the Star City Bulldogs. With 14 years of coaching experience and a reputation for building student-athletes both on and off the field, Garriott steps into the role following the departure of former head coach Chris Norton, who has accepted an administrative position at Perryville.
Garriott’s promotion comes on the heels of a whirlwind day. In an interview with ArkansasVarsity.com, Garriott recounted how quickly everything unfolded—while he was on vacation with his family in Destin, Florida.
“Man, it’s been crazy for my family and me,” Garriott said. “We got down to Destin around noon, sat down at a restaurant for lunch, and I get a text from Coach Norton that he was leaving. By about 4:00, I had been called and offered the job—and I accepted it. In a matter of four hours, you go from one point to another. It’s been a whirlwind, but God is good. We’ve been blessed with this opportunity. I can’t say enough about the administration at Star City. They’re top-notch.”
Garriott made it clear that continuity will be key as the Bulldogs head into the remainder of the summer.
“We’re not going to change a whole bunch right now,” he said. “We did a great job planning our summer all the way up to camp, and we’re going to stick with that plan. We’ve got team camps and 7-on-7 tournaments still lined up for July, along with our workouts. This isn’t our first rodeo when it comes to summer prep—we’re going to press forward and get ready for fall camp and the upcoming season.”
A 2006 graduate of Fayetteville High School, Garriott was a three-year starter who earned All 5A West honors. He went on to play collegiately at Evangel University in Springfield, Missouri, where he was a four-year letterman and earned his degree in 2011.
Garriott began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Evangel before holding key coaching roles at several Arkansas high schools, including Dumas, Bauxite, DeWitt, and Monticello. Since 2021, he has served as Assistant Head Coach and Offensive Coordinator for the Bulldogs.
Listen to our full interview with Coach Matt Garriott in the audio player below: