Ever since former head football coach Mark Sander stepped down from his position, talk of filling the position for the 2019-2020 season has been up in the air.

After three seasons as the head coach of the football team, Sander made the decision to step down from the position. Football has been a huge Friday night hit locally for many years. As the program seems to be deteriorating, talk about what is needed for the players in a football coach has been circulating.

Sander came into the football coaching position with high expectations from all around the community. He had high success as head football coach at Desales high school and also had a head coaching position at Iroquois High school. With a struggling team, it was thought that he would be exactly what was needed to turn the program around and get the community excited about Friday night football games again.

With the football team having another losing season this past season, with only three wins and eight losses, hope for the program continued to circle the drain.

With the head coaching position up for grabs, talk about a new coach that could possibly get the football program back on track has not stopped. Qualities that are needed in a coach vary from school to school, in this case, it seems apparent that change is needed.

With having a previous head coach that had plenty of experience with coaching positions and also a football career that led him to play at the University of Louisville, it is not clear exactly what the team needs to get back on the right track. There are many qualities that coaches can have and every one of them has different styles of leading their players to success. What is needed and expected of a coach also will be different from program to program. In this situation, it is imperative that the position is given to someone who is fully dedicated to turning around and leading the football team in a more positive direction.

Change is not going to happen overnight, especially when it comes to a struggling sports team that seems to be on a continuous downhill spiral. This is why dedication is important for this position. Someone who is 100 percent dedicated and is willing to give all of their freetime to the team would be a great start to the progress of the football team. The players need to feel like they have a coach who is willing to spend their time trying to make them better.

This all leads back to the players feeling comfortable and confident with the coach, or coaches, and their abilities. The new coach needs to be diverse when it comes to their knowledge of football. This means that the team needs someone who’s main focus is not only on the offensive, defensive or special teams side of the ball, but someone who brings every aspect to the table.

The team is in desperate need of somebody who us going to finally lead them in the right direction, which would be a winning season. Even small improvements, such as becoming more versatile on certain sides of the ball or getting further in the state tournament than usual.

As many know, the team will be moving to class 6a, which includes many of the high school football powerhouses such as Saint X, Male and Trinity. The guys, without a doubt, are going to have a tougher schedule for the 2019 season because of the class change. New and improved coaching styles are going to be imperative for the improvement and success of the team, especially since they are now competing at a higher level than in previous seasons.

Class of 2018 football player Ty Hawkins says that the ability for a coach to be personable with the players is very important. “I believe that being personable is the biggest factor. Being able to connect with the community and players will allow the community to get behind the program, as well as the players to really connect with the coach,” said Hawkins. He also added that many high school students are playing sports to have fun and if they have the ability to connect with the coach they could push themselves harder that they originally would.

Hawkins added that he as well as the team have the utmost respect for coach Sander and wish him the best as he moves on with his football and coaching career.