Blount High School is in the market for its fourth head football coach in four years.

A source close to the situation told AL.com this weekend that the school was going in a “new and different direction” for a head football coach after one year under Josh Harris.

Blount was 3-7 in his only season at the helm of his alma mater. He did not return a message left by AL.com on his cell phone late last week. He was informed of the move last week, according to the source.

Harris was hired in December 2021 at age 34 to take over at Blount, replacing interim head coach Dedrick Sumpter. Sumpter stepped in when Lev Holly moved to the Mobile County Public School office.

Harris spent four weeks of the season on paid administrative leave after a video surfaced that appeared to show him spanking one of his players in the lockerroom.

However, he returned to his job in early October and finished the season with his team.

Harris is a 2006 Blount graduate who played quarterback for legendary Leopards coach Ben Harris – no relation – before playing college football at Tuskegee. Surgery ended any shot of Harris having a career in the pros, so he immediately went into coaching quarterbacks in the Atlanta area.

After he and his wife returned to the Mobile area, Harris coached quarterbacks at Blount for Holly in 2020 and spent the 2021 season leading Scarborough Middle School to an 8-0 record and a middle school championship.

After the spanking incident, Blount players posted a video in support of Harris.

The Leopards reached the Class 6A quarterfinals in Holly’s final season in 2020 but have missed the playoffs each of the last two years. Blount hasn’t missed the playoffs in three straight seasons since the mid-1980s (1983-1985).

The change at Blount leaves four current head football jobs open in Mobile and Baldwin County. Citronelle, McGill-Toolen and Bayside Academy also are looking for new coaches.

In addition, Hall of Fame coach Stacy Luker stepped down last week at Clarke County.