By Whitney Butler
On Tuesday, January 17th the Calhoun County Board of Education approved for the hiring of a new athletic director and head football coach.
Ms. Emilee Nichols is the wife of Calhoun graduate Joshua Nichols has taken the reigns and is eager to get this athletic department back to running smoothly after an abrupt resignation of former director Ernest Tingler back in October. Tingler took the position in the summer months but decided to step down due to health concerns. The athletic department has been ran in the interim by Principal David Gaul.
Gaul took this task on to get Calhoun through until a new director could be hired and managed fairly well considering his other job requirements. But from what we have heard at Ridgeview that parents and students are all very excited to see what Nichols can do for their perspective programs.
Emilee is a stay at home mother of two Calhoun students who attend school through the Engenuity Program offered at CMHS.She is also the current middle school booster president, but will be stepping down as soon as a replacement can be voted in.They are very active in the athletic department on top of owning their own farm and all the critters that go with it. The Nichols family is also a part of the West Virginia rodeo and compete at various locations around the state and often out of state. Her husband Josh graduated from Calhoun in 2004 and went on to be certified with welders union Local 798. Josh was also hired on Tuesday night to help fill a much needed wrestling coach position.
Josh and Emilee have also been active in Calhoun Wrestling since their children were in youth league where Emilee becamewell known for being organized, easily adaptable and hardworking. So there’s no doubt she will have what it takes to take the athletic department to new levels.
Along with Nichols, the board also approved the recommendation for high school head football coach. This position has been open since Coach Mike Stump resigned in November. Coach Stump stepped in to get the team through the remainder of the season after the former coach resigned. There were around 8 applicants for the position, each bringing their own perks to the table. But after extensive interviews it was Jeffrey Goodrich, a 2008 graduate of CMHS, who received the recommendation and will take over this fall.
Goodrich can be seen on the Wall of Fame in the high school for his accomplishments as a Calhoun Athlete. He along with his wife Colleen live in Millstone where they are raising their daughters. And have both dedicated their time to coaching at the youth level since it started back up a few years ago and many other athletic programs around the county. Jeff, along with assistant coaches Zac Yeager and Nathan Allison, haven’t let the long hiring process deter them. They’ve been hitting the gym since December, encouraging the kids to get in the weight room by putting in the work themselves . And it’s working. They’ve had a good turn out almost every night. Which considering there are several athletes currently playing another sport is impressive.
After several losing seasons, the revolving door of coaching staff and the lack of off-season work, the new coaching staff is excited to see where this group of boys will go this fall and how much stronger they will be.
The future of Calhoun sports looks very bright. With our youth league building every year and the dedication of volunteers Calhoun will soon be back on everyone’s radar as a school to watch.
