Durden selected as head football coach at Excel Christian Academy
- Staff
- 1 hour ago
- 2 min read
April 30, 2025
Dr. Marty Durden has been selected as the first head football coach at Excel Christian Academy and will begin building the program in preparation for the Eagles’ inaugural season in 2025.
A native of Attapulgus, Georgia, Durden has won ten state championships in a career that spans decades. He has five state titles in football, three in golf, one in basketball, and one in baseball. His most recent football title was in 2020.
Durden and his wife Diane have two sons — Chip in Columbus, Georgia, and Tyler in Lawrenceville, Georgia. Tyler and his wife Emily have a two-year-old son.
Dr. Durden’s focus is on servant leadership. For over a decade, he has researched the motivational aspects of servant leadership in coaching. He has also written several academic articles and authored two books.
He serves as the CEO of a non-profit organization, A Higher Standard for Athletics, which aims to train coaches, business leaders, and teachers in servant leadership. Dr. Durden is convinced that coaches hold transformational importance in society, and he shares his knowledge through a weekly podcast titled Coaching to a Higher Standard.
Dr. Durden is an Assistant Professor of Sport Management at Shorter University in Rome, Georgia, and an adjunct professor at Belhaven University and Houston Christian University.
He is an avid golfer and outdoorsman. He also loves to work in his flower garden, especially crossbreeding day lilies. His favorite verse is Isaiah 40:31, “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as Eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.”
Rodney Stewart, Head of School at ECA, stated, “We are excited about Coach Durden's addition and the proven track record he brings to the Eagles’ athletic program.”
In 2025, Excel Christian Academy will participate in nine-man football within the Georgia Association of Private and Parochial Schools (GAPPS). The Eagles' first ten-game regular season will begin on August 15, with home games held at Cunningham Stadium on Grassdale Road, next to the Bartow County College and Careers Center.
ECA begins its schedule at Fideles Christian on August 15 and will play its first home game on August 22 against Unity Christian. The Eagles also have road games at Holy Ground Baptist Academy, Hearts Academy, Trinity Christian, and Covington Academy. Home games in 2025 will include dates with Horizon Christian, Johnson Ferry Christian Academy, Praise Academy, and Kings Way Baptist.
