he Detroit Lions have named Eric Pettway of Wayne Memorial High School the week one recipient of the 2025 Detroit Lions High School Football Coach of the Week Program, presented by Carhartt. Pettway’s Zebras kicked off the season with a victory over the Romulus Eagles 35-26, breaking a 17-game losing streak for the Zebras and only the 2nd program win since 2019. On Friday, September 5th, Wayne Memorial hosts their 1st home game of the 2025 season as the Livonia Stevenson Spartans come to town for the 11th matchup all-time.
Pettway is in his 1st season as head coach at Wayne Memorial, having spent the last three seasons as head coach at River Rouge. Prior to his head coaching stints, Pettway spent 13 years as an assistant coach/defensive coordinator at River Rouge where he won a state championship in 2019 and was a state runner-up in 2020. Pettway started his high school football coaching career at Southfield Lathrup High School, his alma mater, in 2005. In his 4 seasons as head coach, Pettway has accumulated a 19-15 (55.9%) overall record.
Detroit Lions Football Education sat down with Pettway to discuss the week #1 victory over Romulus and what it did for the student-athletes and the student body, what the team is doing to prepare for Livonia Stevenson and how important it was for the program to embrace the mascot name Zebras. Pettway was also informed of his Coach of the Week selection on on Head Coach Hangout. See his reaction and the entire interview by visiting the Detroit Lions Coach of the Week.
