Joe Sturdivant is stepping down as Parkview’s football coach after two seasons to coach college ball in South Dakota in a move he hopes will help his 8-year-old son, Bear, who has been diagnosed with PANS/PANDAS, a pediatric neuropsychiatric disorder.
“My son is sick and affected by mold,” Sturdivant told the AJC. “Georgia is humid, and it rains all the time. It’s a great place to live, but not necessarily for him. The opportunity came up out of the blue to move out West, and we decided that’s what’s best for our family.”
In his new job, Sturdivant will be the defensive backs coach at Black Hills State, a Division II school near the South Dakota-Wyoming border.
Sturdivant is a Parkview graduate and Gwinnett County native who has experience working far from home. He coached four seasons in Europe a decade ago and also has coached at IMG Academy in Florida and Rabun Gap in northeast Georgia.
Sturdivant was a star player on Parkview’s 2000-02 state championship teams before going on to play at SMU. He became Parkview’s coach in 2023.
Black Hills defensive coordinator J.B. Brown reached out to Sturdivant about the job. Brown once coached Sturdivant on Team USA, and Sturdivant later recommended a couple of future NFL players to him – K.J. Osborne and Tyler Mabry from IMG – when Brown was at the University of Buffalo in 2013-14.
Sturdivant told his Parkview players Tuesday.
“The relationship between a football coach and player, it’s lifelong,” Sturdivant said. “I hope that I taught them something about life and we can stay connected. Parkview is a special place. The right guy will come along and carry on the tradition.”
Sturdivant and his wife, Virginia, also have a 4-year-old daughter, Avery.
PANS/PANDAS often result from infections or environmental triggers and present with a variety of symptoms, many affecting mood.
According to Stanford Medical Center, the prognosis for those with PANS/PANDAS can be very good ‘’for children who are diagnosed early and a cause has been identified. … Some patients respond quickly and are back to 100 percent normal function.”
