When Bill Vonada retired from his head coaching position at Springstead last year, he knew he needed the break and someone else would fill his shoes. But now, he’s ready to return to football.
Vonada has been hired as Hernando’s new coach after he and two others were interviewed Wednesday.
“I knew before, when I stepped down from coaching, that it wouldn’t be a permanent thing,” said Vonada, who coached the Eagles to a 79-75 mark.
Hernando athletic director Kevin Bittinger said the school posted the job within Hernando County and wanted someone with previous experience. Vonada coached Springstead 15 years and took the Eagles to four playoff appearances.
“He’s just got such a wealth of experience,” Bittinger said. “And he’s a high character guy, too.”
The Leopards went 3-7 this season under second-year coach Dwayne Mobley — who stepped down after a 9-12 mark. Mobley led the Leopards to a playoff berth in 2012, but they exited in the first round after a 60-3 loss to Gainesville.
Vonada said his goal will be to build a competitive team that the community can be proud of, but he’s not going to set a win-loss goal.
“We’ve got to really sit down and evaluate things, but our goal is always the same: to create young men of character,” Vonada said.
Bittinger said Vonada will teach at the high school as well.
Vonada said he and the administration haven’t worked out which subjects he will tackle, but he’s confident they’ll build a schedule that allows him to succeed as head coach.