Central football coach leaving for St. Louis County job

Cape Girardeau Central football coach Nathan Norman will leave his position and head north to St. Louis after an unprecedented five-year run at the school that included three consecutive Class 4 semifinals appearances and the lone state-title game appearance for the Tigers in 2014.

Norman was approved Tuesday night by the Lindbergh Schools Board of Education to fill the vacated varsity head-coach position with the Class 6 Flyers, according to a source with the school district.

Norman posted winning records in four of five seasons at Central, his first job as a head coach, and compiled a 41-23 record overall.

He led the Tigers to three consecutive Class 4 District 1 titles (2013, 2014 and 2015) and two SEMO North Conference crowns (2014, 2015).

The Lindbergh Schools Board of Education voted in December not to renew the contract of longtime coach Tom Beauchamp after his 21st season, one in which the Flyers finished 2-8.

Beauchamp posted a 107-95 record during his tenure, including leading the Flyers to the Class 6 state championship game in 2002.

It was one of seven playoff appearances Lindbergh had made since 2001.

Norman also took Central to such heights over the past three seasons, each ultimately ending in losses to Class 4 powerhouse Webb City.

In 2013, the Tigers reached the state semifinals for the second time in school history, with the previous appearance in 1978.

The Tigers reached the Edward Jones Dome for the first time in 2014, with a 12-3 season ending in a 48-21 loss to perennial power Webb City in the Class 4 state championship game.

Central recorded a 9-5 season last fall, with Norman’s final game with the Tigers a 35-14 loss at home to Webb City in the state semifinals.

The Norman era as Central coach coincided with the unveiling of Tiger Stadium, a 5,000-seat multipurpose facility that opened in 2011.

Central won its first four games under Norman, including a 21-20 victory over Festus on Sept. 2, 2011, that was the first game played on the Central High School campus in the 100-year history of the program.

The Tigers went 6-3 in that campaign, coming on the heels of a 10-2 season in which Norman served as an assistant to Rich Payne.

In 2012, the Tigers finished 5-7 and reached the district championship game — a harbinger of things to follow.

Norman was a starting fullback for Arkansas in the Southeastern Conference after a decorated prep career at Jackson High School.

Norman, a two-time first-team all-state player, played fullback and linebacker on Jackson teams that reached the Class 4 state championship games in 1994 and 1995.