Macon County football head coach charged with felony after traffic stop

WARNER ROBINS -- Macon County football head coach Dexter Copeland has been charged with a felony drug offense after a traffic stop Jan. 28.

Copeland, 46, was charged with weaving and failure to maintain lane, open container violation, violation of the Georgia Controlled Substance Act for possession of the pain medication hydrocodone, and violation of the act for drugs not kept in original container, according to Houston County Sheriff's Office records.

Efforts to reach Copeland were unsuccessful.

The possession charge is a felony, while the other three charges are misdemeanors, said Houston County sheriff's Capt. Ronnie Harlowe.

Copeland was driving his 2013 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 pickup truck when he was pulled over at 3:49 p.m. by a Houston County sheriff's deputy at South Pleasant Hill Road and Jones Place, a sheriff's incident report said. His pickup truck was impounded.

Copeland was arrested and taken to the Houston County jail, according to online jail records. He was released on a $4,300 bond the next day.

Macon County School Superintendent D. Ray Hill and Assistant School Superintendent Marc Maynor could not be reached for comment.

Copeland, a Northside graduate, took over at Macon County last spring following the resignation of Larry Harold, who left for Brunswick.

Macon County won the GHSA Region 4-AA championship in 2015 with a 5-0 region record and finished 10-3 overall, losing to eventual Class AA champion Pace Academy in the quarterfinal round.

Copeland took the Macon County position after a year at Twiggs County, where he also had been the head coach and athletics director from 2001-09.

In his first stint at Twiggs County, the Cobras had only two losing seasons, and he departed with a record of 73-32. A highlight of his time at Twiggs County was the development of student-athlete Darqueze Dennard, who earned a scholarship to Michigan State and was a first-round NFL draft pick by Cincinnati in May of 2014.

In May of 2010, Copeland was hired as the head coach and athletics director at Baldwin. Copeland was The Telegraph's All-Middle Georgia Coach of the Year in 2010 after leading Baldwin to a 10-2 record in his first season. Copeland was let go after the 2013 season with a 27-17 record in four seasons.

Within about two months, he had accepted the job at Twiggs County. The Cobras went 1-9 in 2014, the fourth losing season in Copeland's career but the fifth straight for the program since his first departure.

To contact writer Becky Purser, call 256-9559, or find her on Twitter@ MLoughMacon.

This story was originally published February 4, 2016 at 8:37 PM with the headline "Macon County football head coach charged with felony after traffic stop ."