Union High School’s longtime football coach is officially out Travis Turnerabout four months after he disappeared in the forest.
Jamie Harless has been named the school’s new head football coach, as the search for Turner, 46, continues.
“Everything has to move forward,” Harless told News 5 WCYB on Thursday, March 12. “You can’t look back.”
Turner was a longtime coach and teacher at Union High in Big Stone Gap, Virginia, before his disappearance on November 20, 2025. Shortly after his disappearance, Turner was charged with five counts of child pornography and five counts of using a computer to solicit a minor.
Harless guided Lord Botetourt High School in Daleville, Virginia, to 134 wins, four district titles and three state runner-up finishes in 14 years as coach.
“My biggest point for anyone, if you’re going to be the leader of a football team, teach them how to be a real man,” said Harless. “You can’t be a good footballer unless you know how to act like a real man.”
Travis Turner
Courtesy of Leslie Caudill Turner/FacebookHe added, “The children should know that I will have fun with them, I want them to be men, but I want them to have fun.”
Principal of Union High Jerred Chandler he explained that the school decided to hire Harless because he “doesn’t work just being a coach.”
“He works with relationships with kids,” Chandler told WCYB. “He studies the game, he knows the history of the game.”
Turner was not officially terminated as an employee at Union High until Feb. 9. He collected $21,226.35 from the school district after the allegations against him were revealed.
A Virginia high school parent who has been expressing concern over the investigation into the disappearance of football coach Travis Turner, has been forced to take drastic action. Stephen Murray, whose stepdaughter attends the school where Turner, 46, taught and coached, said her life had become “a bad mafia movie.” “If […]
“Payment records may reflect compensation issued after board action due to normal payment processing times, contractual obligations, legal requirements, or accrued leave,” Wise County school district superintendent. Mike Goforth he told WCYB. “Such records do not reflect ongoing employment status.”
Turner was allegedly last seen by his family members entering a thickly wooded area behind his home when authorities were on their way to question him.
In a statement to Us Weekly on March 9, Virginia State Police (VSP) said there had been no “visible sightings” of Turner.
“This case is being worked on every day. It is twofold: we have a criminal investigation and a search,” said the VSP. Captain J. Daniels. “Everyone who earns money has been investigated, followed up, everything was baseless, we need the public to continue to provide information, someone knows where he is.
