The longest-tenured head football coach in Fairhope football history, Tim Carter, announced his retirement Friday morning after 11 seasons with the Pirates.

"I have been the luckiest guy in the world for the last 35 years and the last 11 have been the icing on the cake," Carter said. "I am ready to pass the torch to somebody else — Fairhope is really special. I feel like it may be time for somebody else and a chance for me to relax and unwind."

He was also the current longest-tenured head coach in Baldwin County. The only coach to lead the Pirates for a comparable length of time was Randall Hammer, who coached Fairhope for nine years from 1948–57.

Carter spent 24 years as a high school head football coach in Alabama, arriving at Fairhope after a nine-year stint at Auburn and four seasons at Monroe Academy. He finishes his career with a 168-102 record, including a 70-49 mark at Fairhope, along with a career total of 15 playoff wins, a region championship in 2021 and seven losing seasons. Carter led the Pirates to an 8-4 record this season and secured the first postseason victory of his Fairhope tenure.

Fairhope becomes the second football program in the county set to enter the 2026 season with a new head coach, joining Foley, which recently hired Bryan Moore.

"I am sure they will ask me my advice on something, and I have a good relationship with the people who will be hiring," Carter said of Fairhope's coaching search. "But I have total confidence in the school leadership; they will make a good choice for the kids."