After 43 years in coaching, Jimmy Perry is ready to spend more time with his family.

The veteran coach, inducted into the Alabama High School Hall of Fame a year ago and two months removed from a Class 3A state championship, announced his retirement from St. James on Tuesday.

He talked to his team this morning.

“I’ve had a good run,” Perry told AL.com. “Now is a good time. The program is in great shape. We’ve got a lot of kids coming back. It’s just a good time to step away. I’m very replaceable as a head coach, but I’m not replaceable as a husband to my wife, a father to my children and a grandfather to my grandchildren.

“I need to spend the last quarter of my life in a place where I’m irreplaceable.”

The 65-year-old Perry said he’s not ready to stop working but that likely won’t include coaching.

“I just have to do something that is less time consuming where I can spend more time with my wife and family,” he said.

Perry won 157 games in 19 years as a head coach, the last 11 at St. James in Montgomery. He went 92-37 with the Trojans, including a 13-2 run in 2022 that culminated in a 45-28 victory over Piedmont in the 3A title game in Auburn.

“How lucky can you be?” Perry asked, rhetorically. “Last year, we won the whole enchilada. It’s just the right time. The program is in shape. They are on top of the heap. It’s a storybook ending as my old buddy (former St. Paul’s coach) Steve Mask said.

“Last year, I knew we would be real competitive. We’ve always been able to run the ball. This year, we were lucky to also have a junior (K.J. Jackson) who will be a 5-star quarterback before it’s all done. It was a great mix.”

St. James’ only losses came to Handley and Class 5A runner-up Charles Henderson. The Trojans won nine straight games to finish the season. It marked St. James’ fourth season of 10 or more victories in the past five. The Trojans are 50-12 during that stretch. They made the playoffs in 10 of Perry’s 11 seasons as coach.

“It’s been a lot of fun,” Perry said. “I’ve coached a lot of great players, worked with a lot of great coaches along the way.”

Perry, a Lee-Montgomery and Auburn University alumni, started his coaching career at Trinity as defensive coordinator from 1979-1981. He then began an 18-year stint at his Lee, ranging from offensive line coach to offensive coordinator to head coach (1995-1999).

He left Lee for Auburn University where he spent nine seasons, first as director of high school relations and later as director of football operations before returning to the high school ranks as head coach of St. Paul’s in Mobile. He went 27-8 there before leaving following the 2011 season to take the St. James’ job.

Perry also received some welcome news last week when Doctors declared him cancer free after a two-year battle.

“I’ve been so blessed,” he said. “The good Lord brought me through heart surgery, a kidney transplant and now cancer. He is going to bring me something I can do now and be productive while devoting a lot more time to my family.”