Tim Nickens was offered the head coaching job at Wilkinson County Christian Academy right off the bat after interviewing.

He turned it down then, but didn’t pass on another chance to coach the Ram football team.

&uot;I had several offers and several looked good, but I was impressed with the kids here and the administration,&uot; Nickens said.

Nickens, 34, has spent the last four years as head coach at North Sunflower Academy in Drew. He played football for two years at Northwest Community College before going on to play center at Tennessee-Martin.

Nickens was 21-21 at North Sunflower. His team went 6-0 in district two years ago before losing to Winston Academy in the second round of the playoffs.

&uot;I just thought it was time to leave the Delta and I was looking around,&uot;&160;Nickens said.

WCCA’s football program has been down in recent years, but Nickens plans on changing that.

&uot;They’ve had a lot of success in their junior high program,&uot; he said. &uot;The last four years, they’ve only lost two games. The transition to high school just hasn’t been good for whatever reasons. We’re going to try to continue the success of the junior high.&uot;

Nickens has 13 sophomores on his 24-man squad.

&uot;We have a lot of young guys, but they have a lot of potential,&uot; he said.

Nickens said he’s asking his team to give everything they’ve got and be competitive.

&uot;We just have to get them pointed in the right direction,&uot; he said.

Nickens said his defense has done a good job of running to the ball, but the offense may take longer because he is changing from a wing-T to split backs, using a veer formation.

&uot;We’ve had to do a lot of teaching there,&uot; he said. &uot;The main thing we have to do is just keep improving each week.&uot;