Mitchell is keeping its football coaching position in the family.
Andy Schmitz — son of former Mustang coach Scott Schmitz — was offered the job Monday afternoon.
“This, honestly, is where I’ve always wanted to be,” Andy Schmitz said. “This is where I started, when I first graduated from college.”
Mitchell first hired Schmitz in 2003 as a history teacher, and he worked as an assistant football coach under his father. He became the school’s basketball coach the following year.
During his three-season tenure as basketball coach, the Mustangs made the playoffs twice and won a district championship.
Schmitz left the school in 2010 to become Hudson’s athletic director. He quickly realized it wasn’t the role he wanted, and he returned to Mitchell as a social studies teacher in 2011.
Now, he said, his goal for the Mustangs is simple.
“We really only have one goal — that’s to win a district championship,” Schmitz said. “We’ve never done that. Players, coaches, administration …everyone thinks that’s something we should be competing for every year.”
The Mustangs compete in Class 6A, District 6. They were ranked fourth in district play in 2013 after going 6-4 overall and 1-3 against district opponents.
Scott Schmitz retired in November after a 36-year coaching career. He started the Mustangs’ football program in 2000 and was the longest-tenured coach in Pasco County.