SOCIAL CIRCLE, Ga. — Social Circle High School athletic department’s history books have been updated quite a bit lately. Over the last few years, the Redskins have enjoyed unprecedented success. 

At the helm of it all is athletic director Craig Hargrove. But, according to Hargrove, it’s the people at Social Circle High who make all the difference. 

“I think we have the best community, the best student-athletes and our coaching staff is just great,” Hargrove said. “It’s very rewarding to see the whole community rally around sports and athletics and supporting our students.”  

Hargrove grew up next door

Hargrove arrived at Social Circle City Schools seven years ago. He was not completely unfamiliar with Social Circle prior to his arrival, though. 

Hargrove spent his childhood in Covington and grew up with three brothers — oldest, Chad, second oldest, Matt, Hargrove and then Jarrett. 

When asked what his earliest sports memories are, Hargrove pointed straight to time spent with his siblings. 

“Everything was a competition with us,” Hargrove said. “Who could swim the fastest or make the biggest splash in the pool. Or playing football in the backyard. Then, getting involved with middle school athletics and started wrestling.With wrestling, I was like, ‘Hey, this is what I really enjoy.’” 

Growing up, Hargrove played church league softball, soccer at The Y and basketball with the Newton County Recreation Department. 

One thing became crystal clear about possibly pursuing a hoops career. 

“I’m 5-foot-7,” Hargrove said while laughing. “I learned pretty quickly that I was pretty limited in basketball.” 

Then, Hargrove progressed to participate in middle school athletics as a Cousins Middle School Cardinal. He continued exploring different sports and came across wrestling. 

It was then Hargrove realized his favorite sport to compete in. 

“As soon as I got involved in wrestling, that’s when I knew, ‘Hey, this is all I want to focus on,’” Hargrove said.

After his three years at Cousins Middle, Hargrove transitioned to Newton High School in 1994. While a Ram, he was a member of the wrestling team and ran cross country. 

Hargrove said he was “competitive” during his high school career. However, in the latter part of his time in high school is when Hargrove’s inclination for coaching began. 

“I knew pretty quickly around my 11th grade year when you started figuring out, ‘Hey, what do you want to do?’ I love school. There was nothing I didn’t like about school. I loved athletics and being involved in all of the sports,” Hargrove said. “I realized I wanted to get into teaching and coaching.” 

Educational and coaching background

Upon graduating from Newton as part of the class of 1998, Hargrove enrolled at Gordon State College in Barnesville, Georgia. He spent two years there and wrestled with a local club team. 

Hargrove transferred and graduated from Georgia Military College (GMC) in Milledgeville, Georgia. 

At present, Hargrove has earned a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree as well as a specialist. 

After earning his Bachelor’s from GMC, Hargrove got his coaching start in 2003 back at his alma mater — Newton High. 

Hargrove taught and was a wrestling coach for two years. Then, he earned his first head coaching gig down the road at Rockdale County High School and spent 11 years at the helm. 

Following his stint as a Bulldog is when Hargrove got the opportunity to become a Redskin. 

Hargrove originally started out at Social Circle Middle School when he was hired to be an assistant principal and the school’s athletic director. At the time, Tim Armstrong — the current principal of Social Circle High — was the high school’s athletic director. 

Armstrong was promoted to be principal two years later and Hargrove earned the promotion to be the high school’s athletic director. 

Hargrove stressed that becoming an athletic director was never on his radar, either. 

“I guess it just happened. Being in athletics and putting so much into it, you find yourself having those opportunities available. When I left Rockdale and came to Social Circle, I don’t think [being the athletic director] was ever the goal,” Hargrove said. “You put yourself in those situations where you have those experiences, it kind of makes sense.” 

Now, Hargrove has been the Redskins’ athletic director for five years. Over that time, Hargrove has leaned on his past coaching experience a lot. 

“There was just a lot of growth within athletics and learning how to run a program,” Hargrove said. “Being an assistant athletic director gave me a lot of experience helping other coaches with their programs, helping other booster clubs get established. When I started having those opportunities, I was like, ‘This would be something where I want to get into the profession full-time.’” 

Redskins’ recent success

The majority of athletic programs at Social Circle have recently experienced high levels of success. 

In 2022, Social Circle’s football team advanced to the second round of the state playoffs for the first time since 2006 after finishing region runners up. The Redskins also started up their volleyball program and completed their first season. 

Softball were region runners up and finished No. 2 in the state. 

The boys basketball team won back-to-back region crowns, which is the first time it has accomplished that feat. The Redskins also advanced to the Final Four in 2021 for the first time ever. The girls basketball team advanced to the postseason two straight years, too, following a six-year absence. 

Social Circle’s girls soccer team won its first ever state title in the 2021-22 school year. In 2022-23, the Lady Redskins followed up by winning their second consecutive region championship. The boys team won the region crown in the 2021-22 school year as well. 

Meanwhile, the wrestling kept racking up its accolades with additional top finishes among the state ranks. On the track and field scene, the Redskins have had numerous individuals make noise on the state stage. 

This past school year, Aidan Crutchfield earned state runner up in the swimming and diving championships. 

The Redskins also had 12 student-athletes sign national letters of intent. Hargrove helped restart the school’s athletics hall of fame, too. 

At the end of the 2021-22 school year, Hargrove was recognized for his efforts leading the Redskins. He received the region and Class A Athletic Director of the Year awards from the Georgia Athletic Director Association. 

After winning those awards, Hargrove shared what he enjoys the most about his role. 

“My favorite part is watching our kids compete,” Hargrove said. “ When it’s time for a competition, regardless of the sport, it is very satisfying to me.  The countless hours of preparation, practices, fundraising and weight training is hidden in the background, but it becomes evident during competition.” 

Hargrove’s aspirations moving forward

Even with the  success the Redskins have experienced as of late, Hargrove doesn’t want the program to become complacent. 

A new athletic year is coming soon. The first day of the new school term is Aug. 2, the softball season commences Aug. 7 and football kicks off on Aug. 11. 

Hargrove has great anticipation for the Redskins to accomplish with a fresh year upcoming. 

“It's no secret we have had some success as an athletic department in recent years.  Moving forward, we have to continue to focus on our core values as an athletic department which helps make the student-athlete experience so positive,” Hargrove said. “Those core values include student-athlete development, communication, academic support, sportsmanship, and professional development.”