Burgettstown hires 2 head coaches
Burgettstown High School's wrestling program will have two head coaches next season. With the wrestling season just five weeks away and the district struggling to find a replacement for Chris Day, the school board decided to hire Terry Havelka and Jon Vallina, the school's athletic director, as co-coaches for this season.
Havelka took last season off to watch his son, Jeff, wrestle for the University of Findlay. Day took the position on an interim basis because Havelka wanted to return for the 2009-10 season. When Jeff Havelka received an extra year of eligibility because of a shoulder injury that wiped out most of the 2007 season, Terry Havelka wanted to postpone his return.
So the board attempted to fill the position and thought it had a candidate ready at the September meeting. But that hire fell through, leaving the school district with little time to find another coach.
Terry Havelka has been in the program for 30 years and Vallina has coached for a dozen seasons. They know their stuff. Each had problems with taking the position on a full-time basis so making them co-coaches was a good idea. Vallina said he wants to bring in three or four assistants to give the program more flexibility.
Gary Havelka and Kent Vallina will coach the junior high program.
Havelka took last season off to watch his son, Jeff, wrestle for the University of Findlay. Day took the position on an interim basis because Havelka wanted to return for the 2009-10 season. When Jeff Havelka received an extra year of eligibility because of a shoulder injury that wiped out most of the 2007 season, Terry Havelka wanted to postpone his return.
So the board attempted to fill the position and thought it had a candidate ready at the September meeting. But that hire fell through, leaving the school district with little time to find another coach.
Terry Havelka has been in the program for 30 years and Vallina has coached for a dozen seasons. They know their stuff. Each had problems with taking the position on a full-time basis so making them co-coaches was a good idea. Vallina said he wants to bring in three or four assistants to give the program more flexibility.
Gary Havelka and Kent Vallina will coach the junior high program.
posted by Joe Tuscano at
12:01 AM
5 Comments:
If 2 boys is half a boy and three boys are no boys at all does that apply to coaches as well. It seems like no one wants this job...
Not to change the subject but does anyone know the attendance numbers for the PIAA championships combined AA and AAA for 2009, 2008, and 2007. There was an article in the post gazette today talking about attendance for championships of Football, Basketball and Wrestling being down. They listed the Football and Basketball numbers but not the wrestling numbers. I think it is significant because the wrestling seems to be alot higher than the others if I recall correctly. I know the wrestling takes place over several days but I think it is worth mentioning in a letter to the paper. They also mentioned the average attendance for 2004-2006 for Football and Basketball but again not for Wrestling. I would be curious what those numbers are as well. I would like people to see how significant wrestling is in relation to these sports in this instance.
While I do not have the number right now, the attendance at last year's PIAA Championships was slightly down. The attendance figures are usually given out for the night sessiosn, which are the most popular, past the deadlines for most newspapers. That's why I can't use them.
The three-day event draws around 50,000 fans and it is a money-maker for the PIAA. Football, meanwhile, depends on the weather. The fact the football title games are televised live give people a reason to stay home when the weather is poor. Cold weather crushed the WPIAL championships last season.
Wrestling finals have been televised on a tape-delayed basis over the years so that encourages people to come in person. It's also held inside a nice warm Giant Arena. Many people schedule vacation time for the wrestling championships. It's a three-day event and many use that time as a sort of Spring Break. That doesn't happen in football.
Thanks for the info. I was just curious. Wrestling never gets the recognition like Football and Basketball so I thought it would be kind of interesting if it was a better money maker at the PIAA championships. By the way, this is the first time I have come across your blog and I have only looked at at small part so far but I have really enjoyed it. Keep up the good work.
It's best to see it's effectiveness in the game.
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