As a player and as a coach, Davie is what DeVore Holman has known most of his life. Davie is all he’s known since his freshman year in 1980-81.

Now Holman, 51, is trading his orange-and-black shirts, jackets and hats for West Caldwell’s blue and gold. He is moving 70 miles up the road to take over as the Warriors’ new football coach.

Holman was a defensive lineman for Davie, graduating in 1984. He was a Davie assistant coach under Randall Ward, Benjie Brown and Doug Illing, spanning 23 years from 1990-2012.

Illing left for a high school in South Carolina following the 2012 season, and Holman took over the head job at Davie. He guided the War Eagles from 2013 through part of 2016. The War Eagles were 7-1 overall and 3-0 in the Central Piedmont Conference when Holman resigned for personal reasons on Oct. 12, 2016. Tim Devericks became the interim coach, and he was named the permanent coach in January. Holman’s head-coaching record was 22-21.

“No. 1, I felt like it’s a similar place (as Davie), obviously on a smaller scale,” Holman told the Winston-Salem Journal. “They’ve had success with coach (Chip) English, and it drew my attention. They wanted me to go interview for it, and I was fortunate to get an interview.”

West Caldwell went 10-3 last season, sharing the 2-A conference title with Lincolnton. The Warriors will move up to Class 3-A in 2017-18 under the state association’s class realignment.

West athletic director Stephen McMasters said in a statement: “Coach Holman has an infectious personality to go along with a great football mind. We feel confident that he will fit in great with our school and community.

“We look forward to building on the success we have had in our football program over the past few years.”