Garinger High School in Charlotte will have a new head coach in 2025: Jupiter Wilson, who was formerly the head coach at Hickory Ridge High in Cabarrus County for the past six years.

Wilson confirmed his hiring with HighSchoolOT today.

He will be the sixth head coach to lead Garinger since 2019. The program has struggled to find stability and will hope to find it in Wilson, a former player at UNC.

Wilson has also served as the head coach of Hickory Ridge’s varsity girls basketball team. He is planning to finish out this season with the team while he gets started at Garinger. The Ragin’ Bulls currently have a 10-5 overall record and appear to be likely to make the N.C. High School Athletic Association 4A West playoffs.

The coach took over the football program from Sam Greiner in 2019. He led the Ragin Bulls to four consecutive winning seasons to begin his tenure. In 2023, Hickory Ridge finished with a 3-8 overall record yet still made the N.C. High School Athletic Association 4A state playoffs. This year, Hickory Ridge finished 0-10 and missed the playoffs. He finished his six year stretch leading the football team with a 31-33 overall record and made the playoffs five times.

Garinger finished the 2024 season with an 0-10 overall record and 0-6 record in the Southwestern 4A Conference. The Wildcats were led by DeAngelo Lloyd at the start.

The Wildcats posted an average daily membership this year of 2,348 students. Garinger will be one of the first 8A schools when the NCHSAA realigns into eight classifications later in 2025.

In the first draft of conferences released by the NCHSAA, Garinger was placed into a 7A/8A league with 7As Hopewell, North Mecklenburg, and West Mecklenburg and fellow 8As Chambers, Hough, Mallard Creek, Myers Park, and West Charlotte. These intial conferences are subject to change after the review process.

Garinger’s last winning season came in 2010 when the Wildcats finished 7-5 and made the N.C. High School Athletic Association state playoffs under Lin Fisher.

As one of the oldest schools in North Carolina, Garinger won a 4A state championship in 1959 and can claim nine additional state championships that were won as “Charlotte” or “Central” High Schools.