John McKenzie is returning to Vigor.

The coach who led the Wolves to the 2021 Class 4A state championship has been hired to replace Markus Cook as Vigor’s head coach. He officially was approved by the Mobile County Board of Commissioners on Wednesday and is expected to appear at Mobile Media Days next week.

Cook was relieved of his coaching duties earlier this summer after two years as the team’s head coach. He is now an assistant coach at Williamson.

After leading Vigor to a 14-1 record and the state title, McKenzie was put on administrative leave the next February for undisclosed reasons before ultimately being named the head coach at Murphy High. Both are Mobile County Public Schools.

He spent one year as head coach of the Panthers before taking over at Paul Bryant. After one season leading the Stampede, McKenzie is now returning to Prichard. He has a 24-20 record overall as an Alabama high school coach.

A native of Miami, McKenzie played football at one of the nation’s most recognized high schools, Miami Central. He went on to play quarterback at Jackson State and has spent most of his coaching career in the college ranks. His experience includes a two-year stint as head coach at Delaware State. His only Paul Bryant team went 3-7 in 2023.

Vigor hasn’t been to the playoffs in the two years since McKenzie left. The Wolves went 7-3 a year ago but a forfeit loss against UMS-Wright – a game they won 31-9 on the field – cost them a postseason berth.

This post will be updated