By Kevin Price For GCS Athletics Glynn Academy has a new head boys basketball coach. Jessan Gray, who has coached previously in Glynn County, has been hired to take over the Red Terrors program. He assumes the position left vacant when former head coach Terrance Haywood stepped down following the 2023-2024 season after leading Glynn to the regular-season title in Region 2-AAAAAA. Glynn County Schools executive director of athletics Steve Waters announced Gray’s hiring on Wednesday. “We are very excited to have Jessan come on board as the new head basketball coach at Glynn Academy,” Waters said. “I have followed Jessan’s career over the years, and the timing was just right to bring him back to Southeast Georgia. He has devoted his life to coaching the game of basketball, and he is not only a great basketball coach, but he is also a great mentor and leader.” Gray coached previously at Needwood Middle where he led the Warriors to a 21-10 record while working at the local middle school from 2015-2018. He actually found his way to Brunswick initially because his parents were working at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center. While here, he also helped create Golden Isles Basketball, an AAU program which turned out several winning teams under his guidance. Gray also has coached coached successful AAU teams back in his native state of Iowa. He once played for one of the same teams he later coached back home. Since March 2022, he has been back in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, where he owns Iowa Basketball Academy. Gray has served as the operator and head trainer for the program while overseeing all aspects of the middle-school and high-school teams at the academy. He is excited about returning to coastal Georgia to coach high school hoops. “I am honored to have the opportunity to lead the men’s basketball program at Glynn Academy,” Gray said. “I look forward to working with the talented athletes and helping them achieve their full potential both on and off the court.” Gray played high school basketball in Iowa at Davenport Central, where he was a top-100 McDonald’s All-American nominee. He played one year of college basketball at Indiana University in 2003-04 under Mike Davis who replaced legendary coach Bobby Knight when he was dismissed by the Hoosiers. Gray played at Tyler Junior College as a sophomore and was rated the sixth-best power forward in the nation by Lindy’s magazine prior to the season. He would end up finishing his collegiate career at Iowa State, playing for the Cyclones his final two years. He won the Pete Taylor Hustle Award in 2006 while playing at Iowa State. Gray, who is 6-foot-10, went on to play professionally for 15 seasons in 26 different countries. He inherits a Glynn team that went 22-6 this past season while finishing 10-2 in the region with a starting lineup that usually featured three seniors and two juniors.