Staff Spotlight: Sherand Boyd Jr., GCHS Football

Each Friday during the month of June, Granite City Community Unit School District #9 will highlight a new member of the Granite City High School coaching staff as we prepare for the 2026-27 school year.

This week's staff spotlight features Sherand Boyd Jr.

Boyd is a special education teacher at Granite City High School and is entering his first season as the GCHS Head Football Coach. A former student-athlete at Belleville West High School and the University of Northern Colorado, Boyd brings seven years of coaching experience, most recently serving as the passing game coordinator and cornerbacks coach at Edwardsville High School.

Coach Boyd shares his thoughts on taking the reins of GCHS Football, what he has learned from previous experiences, and what to expect from the Warriors on Friday nights!

What attracted you to the Granite City High School football program and made this the right opportunity for you?What attracted me to Granite City High School was the opportunity to be a part of something special. I grew up watching movies where you see the team that no one picked and everyone talked bad about them, but they shocked the world by the football team turning things around and it impacted the community greatly. I saw an opportunity to come to Granite City and live out a dream I always wanted. I am thankful that Granite City is the place I get to watch that dream unfold. 

You’ve coached at the high school and collegiate levels. What experiences from those stops have helped shape your coaching philosophy?
A great coach is an awesome teacher! An awesome teacher is one who is a continuous learner and one who cares about their students. I have been blessed to have worked for really good head coaches who modeled this to me, in which in return has prepared me to be a head coach.  

As a former team captain and standout player at both Belleville West and the University of Northern Colorado, what lessons from your playing career do you still carry with you as a coach?
I have never been the best athlete in the room or the smartest in the room, but I have learned to surround myself with the smartest and best in the room. Surrounding myself with the right people and being a part of a team has contributed to any personal accolade I have ever received. I learned that on a football team, you need one another and there are plenty of coaches and teammates I have had that have shaped me into the coach I am today and I’m forever grateful for them. 

How valuable is it to have initiatives like our new Elementary Athletics program in place to introduce younger students to football and help create excitement for the sport throughout the district?
Creating a pipeline with the youth in our community will create a longevity of success for the Granite City High School Football Program. The athletes that pad up on Friday nights were once the kindergarten students who attended our elementary schools. We want our kids in our elementary schools  to be able to visualize seeing themselves on a Friday night. By us being visible to the youth and establishing relationships early, we will mold our community into a big family. 

As both a Special Education Teacher and football coach, how do you help student-athletes succeed in the classroom as well as on the field?
One thing I learned from my professor Jennifer Lieber was, “There is nothing special about special education. Good teaching is good teaching.” We will educate, equip, and empower our student-athletes to not only be the best on the field, but in their classroom environments. The truth is if an athlete can learn a sport, they can learn in the classroom. Our job as coaches is to remove barriers, identify growth areas, equip them with learning strategies to grow, and motivate our athletes to be the best in the classroom. 

What can Warrior players and fans expect from a Sherand Boyd-led football team in terms of culture, work ethic, and style of play?
What the community can expect from myself is to create a faith-filled environment that is rooted in Mark 10:45, “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Our vision is to create a family environment amongst the team, of players and coaches who love one another, serve one another, and disciple one another. We want to outdo one another in showing honor because we believe that a team that lives this way, is a force. People can expect us to always remain together.