Another season of high school football in Idaho is just three weeks away!
As we ramp up towards the start of a new year, IdahoSports.com is once again providing wall-to-wall preview coverage of every conference and league around the state.
Additionally, we will be providing complimentary preview pieces outside of strict conference previews.
Today, we're diving into the coaching changes in 2025.
The coaching carousel seems to be picking up more and more steam with each passing season. Long-tenured coaches are a relic from the past, and if a coach makes it to the five-year mark at one school, that’s a pretty decent run by today’s standards. Whether it’s burnout, school board decisions, overbearing parents, lack of dedicated athletes, etc., it’s clear that coaches are more underappreciated than ever.
Need more evidence? For the second year in a row, 32 programs have undergone a coaching change. They are listed below.
CLASS 6A
BORAH LIONS
OUT: J.Q. Kenyon
IN: Daniel Jenkins
Kenyon resigned his post after five seasons at Borah High. The Lions qualified for the postseason in three of those five campaigns, and Kenyon finished with an overall record of 20-28. Borah has had trouble finding its footing among the increasingly competitive Southern Idaho Conference, and now that responsibility falls to Jenkins. Jenkins is fresh off of a state championship at Class 3A Nampa Christian in 2025, and in six years at the private school, his teams went 37-28. Jenkins’ career as a head coach began at Class 3A Parma, where in 2019, he went 1-8 in his lone season leading the Panthers.
CAPITAL EAGLES
OUT: Kevin Hastin
IN: Matt Jacobsen
Hastin is moving on from Capital after three seasons and a 10-19 record (including a 5-5 mark last season) to take the job at 6A SIC rival Meridian. Capital has turned to a familiar face to continue the restoration of one of Idaho’s most historically consistent programs. Matt Jacobsen coached for 18 seasons at Capital as an assistant under longtime head coach Todd Simis, and six of those seasons were spent as the Eagles’ Defensive Coordinator.
KUNA KAVEMEN
OUT: Beau Smith
IN: Josh Bravo
Beau Smith was asked to resign by school officials after two seasons and a 7-13 record overall. The Kavemen will promote from within, as new head coach Josh Bravo has been involved in Kuna’s program for the past five years as a defensive line coach, strength and conditioning coach, and associate head coach. Bravo has coached throughout the Treasure Valley for 22 years in total, spending time as an assistant at Timberline (2 years), Mountain View (3 years), Skyview (10 years) and Caldwell (2 years).
MERIDIAN WARRIORS
OUT: Christian McAlvain
IN: Kevin Hastin
The Warriors are on their second head coach in as many years after McAlvain resigned following last year’s 2-7 season. McAlvain has moved on to Owyhee, where he’ll serve as the Storm’s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. Hastin makes the move across the 6A SIC after spending three seasons as Capital, where he went 10-19 overall and 5-5 in 2025. Prior to his time at Capital, Hastin coached the Troy Warriors in Orange, Calif., the Newberg Tigers in Newberg, Ore., and the Sherwood Bowmen in Sherwood, Ore.. His career record sits at 72-59.
ROCKY MOUNTAIN GRIZZLIES
OUT: Scott Criner
IN: Gary Thorson
Criner’s storied career came to a close after the 2025 season. As a head coach at Timberline and during two stints at Rocky Mountain, Criner’s career record stands at 82-27. But factoring in all of the years he spent as an offensive coordinator, his record increases to 187-46. Criner also won four championships as a coach. Three came as an offensive coordinator at Eagle (in 2009) and at Rocky Mountain (in 2018 and 2020). His lone title as a head coach came in 2015 at Rocky Mountain.
Now, for the first time in his career, Thorson will inherit a program that simply needs fine-tuning, rather than a full-on rebuild. Thorson has been known as a program-builder, taking struggling programs in Oregon and Idaho and bringing them to new heights. His career record across 15 seasons is 96-57, with five league titles. His best stretch as a coach came at Dayton High in Oregon. In back-to-back seasons (2010 and 2011), the Pirates went 22-3, reaching the semifinals in 2010 and the state championship game in 2011. Thorson also coached at Sisters High and Dallas High, both in Oregon, before coming to Idaho last year and coaching at Class 5A Ridgevue. In his lone season with the Warhawks, Thorson led Ridgevue to its best season in school history. The Warhawks finished 6-4 and qualified for the playoffs for the first time ever.
CLASS 5A
COLUMBIA WILDCATS
OUT: Charlie Dotson
IN: Zech Taylor
Columbia’s football program has turned a corner in recent years, and a lot of that credit goes to Charlie Dotson, who was hired three years ago. When Dotson had medical problems unexpectedly pop up just prior to the start of the 2025 season, Taylor, Columbia’s defensive coordinator, assumed interim head coaching duties and steered the ‘Cats to a 6-4 record and just the third playoff appearance in school history. Unfortunately, Dotson was unable to continue coaching, so the job permanently belongs to Taylor now. Taylor grew up in the Seattle area and played college football at the University of Puget Sound in in Tacoma. After serving as an assistant coach at Mount Rainier High in Washington, Taylor has been Columbia’s defensive coordinator for the past three seasons.
IDAHO FALLS TIGERS
OUT: Joe Parker
IN: Dustin Medellin
As Idaho Falls tries to restore the glory in its football program, they’ll do so with their third head coach in three years. Joe Parker took over for Marty Duffin in 2025, and after one season and a 1-8 record, Parker has been replaced by Dustin Medellin. Medellin has spent 18 seasons as an assistant coach, including at Idaho Falls from 2016 to 2018. Most recently, Medellin has been the defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach for Hillcrest for the past five seasons, one of the most consistent 5A programs in Idaho.
MOUNTAIN HOME TIGERS
OUT: Ben Rayfield
IN: Carl Sutherland
Ben Rayfield has stepped down after three seasons and an 8-19 overall mark. Carl Sutherland arrives in Mountain Home from Utah, where he spent the past four seasons as Bear River High’s JV head coach and Director of Football Operations under Trampis Waite (who also moved to a head coaching job in Idaho at Nampa High). Sutherland has nine years of coaching experience overall.
NAMPA BULLDOGS
OUT: Ty Thomas
IN: Trampis Waite
Ty Thomas coached Nampa the past two seasons and went 5-14, though it should be noted that the Bulldogs have been somewhat unlucky in the injury department during that time. The former University of Montana standout plans to remain on staff as an assistant coach under new head man Trampis Waite. Waite arrives in Idaho after spending four seasons as the head coach at Bear River High in Garland, Utah. The Bears were winless when Waite took over, but over four years he compiled a 16-32 record and slowly turned things around with two playoff wins in that time. Waite originally graduated from Ontario High in Oregon in 2013 before playing quarterback at Eastern Oregon University. Prior to becoming a head coach in Utah, Waite served as offensive coordinator at Eagle Point High in Medford, Ore., and at Big Sky High in Missoula, Mont..
RIDGEVUE WARHAWKS
OUT: Gary Thorson
IN: Kurt Taylor
Gary Thorson wasted no time at Ridgevue in 2025, as the Warhawks went 6-4 and participated in the playoffs for the first time ever. Thorson’s lone season at Ridgevue was the best season in the school’s brief history, and he now departs for a new challenge at Class 6A Rocky Mountain. Replacing Thorson is Kurt Taylor, who has over 21 years of coaching experience at a number of schools in Oregon (Madras, Redmond, Glencoe, Newberg and Aloha), as well as Class 3A Payette, where he’s been the past three seasons. Taylor was initially hired as Payette’s head coach, and he led the Pirates to a 2-7 record in 2023. Following the season, Taylor moved into an assistant role under head coaches Marty Avila (in 2024) and Daniel Pecunia (in 2025).
SHELLEY RUSSETS
OUT: Clayton Hall
IN: Mike Messick
Shelley will feature a different head coach for the fourth consecutive season. The previous three skippers (Josh Wells, Jayson Bird and Clayton Hall) all led the Russets to the Class 5A playoffs, but all three trips ended with first round exits. Now, Messick, a familiar name to Shelley fans, has been installed as the interim coach in 2026. Messick has spent more than 25 years coaching football, and was a key member of Shelley’s defensive coaching staff under former head coach Travis Hobson (who led the Russets to back-to-back titles in 2012 and 2013). Messick was also a two-way standout as a player at Shelley in the early 1990s.
VALLIVUE FALCONS
OUT: Shea McClellin
IN: Steve Myers
Shea McClellin, the former Boise State and NFL linebacker, has had a nice coaching career. After starting as Class 4A Cole Valley Christian’s offensive coordinator, McClellin’s first head coaching gig came at his alma mater, Marsing High in 2022. After two seasons there, and a 6-12 mark overall, McClellin was hired at Vallivue, where he guided the Falcons to a 12-8 record. McClellin is transitioning back into life as an offensive coordinator, this time at Class 3A Melba. Steve Myers, meanwhile, prepares for his first head coaching job. Myers played offensive line in college at both Long Beach City College and Division I New Mexico State in the early 1990s, and has served as an offensive line coach at a number of California high schools (El Dorado, Granite Bay, Placer and Oakmont), as well as a two-year stint at Sierra College in Rocklin, Calif.. More recently, Myers has been Vallivue’s offensive line coach for the past three seasons.
CLASS 4A
FRUITLAND GRIZZLIES
OUT: Jordan Gross
IN: Mark Vidlak
After four seasons of coaching his high school alma mater, Jordan Gross is now moving on to his college alma mater, the University of Utah, where he’ll serve as the Utes’ offensive line coach. The 1998 Fruitland graduate played at Utah from 1999 to 2002 before becoming the 8th overall pick in the 2003 NFL Draft by the Carolina Panthers. After an 11-year NFL career, Gross slowly got back into coach, first as an assistant at Fruitland and then as the Grizzlies’ head coach for the past four seasons. Fruitland went 25-18 in that span and now turns to Mark Vidlak, who served as Fruitland’s offensive coordinator under Gross all four seasons. Vidlak’s career began in 1998 at Bend Senior High in Oregon. He eventually settled at Hidden Valley High in Grants Pass, Ore.,, where he spent 20 seasons coaching (at various times) quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers and serving as an offensive coordinator.
McCALL-DONNELLY VANDALS
OUT: David Joyce
IN: Greg Rouse
David Joyce has stopped at a lot of schools across his 30-plus year coaching career, and his time in McCall comes to a close after just one season, a 5-5 record and a trip to the Class 4A playoffs. Joyce has also coached in Edwards (Colorado), Colorado Springs (Colorado), Mountain Home (Arkansas), Jackson Hole (Wyoming) and Class 4A Teton (Driggs, Idaho). His latest venture takes him back to Colorado, where he’ll serve as the head coach at Summit High in Frisco. Greg Rouse assumes the mantle after spending a decade at Class 3A St. Maries. Starting in 2015, Rouse served as the Lumberjacks’ defensive coordinator, and ascended to the top role in 2023. In two seasons as head coach, Rouse went 4-12.
MOSCOW BEARS
OUT: Rob Bafus
IN: Dwight Tardy
Rob Bafus guided the Bears for four seasons, starting in 2022. Moscow went 14-21 in that time, including 13-6 the past two seasons. Bafus’ replacement is a name that’s familiar to fans in the Palouse. Dwight Tardy graduated from St. Paul High School in Santa Fe Springs, Calif., in 2008 and committed to Washington State University, where he became the first running back in WSU history to lead the Cougars in rushing all four seasons. Tardy’s high school coach, Marijon Ancich, was known as the “John Wooden of high school coaches” and is California’s second-winningest coach in state history (360 career wins). That’s a good foundation for Tardy as he embarks upon his first season as a head coach at any level.
TIMBERLAKE TIGERS
OUT: Kelly Amos
IN: Bryce Buttz
What an impact Kelly Amos has left on the Timberlake football program over the years. Amos was the first coach in school history, and led the Tigers to an 8-19 record from 1998 to 2000. After retiring in 2000, Amos returned as an assistant coach under Roy Albertson in 2012. When Albertson retired as Timberlake’s head coach in 2020, Amos reassumed the head coaching role. In his second stint as head coach, Amos went 23-30 from 2020 to 2025. Now, Bryce Buttz becomes just the fourth head coach Timberlake has ever known. Buttz graduated from Class 6A Lake City in 2018 and went straight into coaching. Buttz spent four seasons as an assistant at Lake City. He initially coached the freshmen, serving as their offensive coordinator. In his fourth and final year at his alma mater, he was the head coach of the JV squad. He moved over to Central Valley High in Spokane, Wash., in 2022 and spent the past four seasons coaching the Bears’ quarterbacks. He was also Central Valley’s JV offensive coordinator.
CLASS 3A
KELLOGG WILDCATS
OUT: Dan Davidian
IN: Sam Mailou
Dan Davidian retired after six years of serving as Kellogg’s principal and head football coach. The Wildcats went 23-31 during that time. Sam Mailou is not just new to Kellogg, he’s new to the continental United States. Mailou is a native of Hawaii, and prior to taking the job in Kellogg, he served as an assistant coach in Oahu at Wai?anae High. This will be Mailou’s first head coaching job.
NAMPA CHRISTIAN TROJANS
OUT: Daniel Jenkins
IN: Daniel Miller
Daniel Jenkins has departed to become the new coach at Class 6A Borah. Across six seasons as the Trojans’ head coach, Jenkins went 37-28 and helped Nampa Christian win the 2025 Class 3A state championship. Daniel Miller now takes the reins, bringing an extensive strength and conditioning background into the position. Miller served as a strength and conditioning intern at Boise State in 2012 before handling those duties full-time for the Broncos’ club sports from 2014 to 2018. At the same time, Miller served as Rocky Mountain High’s strength and conditioning coach for all sports. His lone experience as a head coach came at Class 2A Tri-Valley in 2019.
SODA SPRINGS CARDINALS
OUT: Colby Fangman
IN: James Poole
Fangman resigned just two games into the season after Soda Springs started 0-2 and were outscored 93 to 0. He did the exact same thing at his previous job in 2024, when he abruptly quit two weeks into training camp at Mingus Union High in Arizona. His departure left the assistants to share head coaching duties the west of the way. James Poole has experience as a head coach in Idaho, as he led Class 5A Canyon Ridge in 2021 and 2022. Prior to coaching, the Las Vegas native enjoyed a standout career as an All-Pac-12 defensive back at the University of Utah. Poole’s career as a coach started at Class 4A Sugar-Salem, where he served as offensive coordinator from 2017 to 2020 (a span where the Diggers won three consecutive state titles). At Canyon Ridge, Poole’s teams went 7-11 overall with a playoff berth in 2022. Since 2023, Poole has been at Southern Virginia University, coaching the Knights’ wide receivers and serving as special teams coordinator.
CLASS 2A
GLENNS FERRY PILOTS
OUT: Erick Stewart
IN: Dustin Johnson
Erick Stewart departs after three seasons, a 12-16 record and back-to-back trips to the playoffs in 2024 and 2025. Dustin Johnson graduated from Glenns Ferry in 2002 and was a standout defensive back for the Pilots. He continued his career at the University of Montana Western. During his senior season in 2006, Johnson started every game at strong safety for the Bulldogs and tallied 75 tackles, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery and one interception. This will be Johnson’s first coaching job of any kind at the high school level, but he has spent several years coaching Glenns Ferry’s youth teams in football, basketball and baseball. He’s also served as the Eastern Elmore County Recreational District’s Board Chairman.
HAGERMAN PIRATES
OUT: Bill Hicks
IN: Jacob Hicks
After a coaching career spanning more than 30 years, Bill Hicks hung up his whistle following the 2025 season. Hicks coached football, wrestling and baseball in Idaho, Minnesota and Washington during his career, but his years spent coaching football in the Magic Valley were the most impactful. Hicks served as Class 5A Burley’s head coach from 1990 to 1996 and guided the Bobcats to the 1994 A-1 Division II state championship game. After leaving Burley for Washington state, Hicks returned to the Magic Valley in 2009 when he became the first football coach in Class 5A Canyon Ridge’s history. After two seasons of guiding the Riverhawks, Hicks transitioned into a full-time role in administration and remained at Canyon Ridge until 2022 when he came to Hagerman. While serving as Hagerman’s principal, Hicks also coached the Pirates to a 30-14 record across four seasons, with three playoff appearances and two trips to the state semifinals. Bill now hands the keys to his son Jacob, who has spent the past two seasons serving as Hagerman’s offensive coordinator. This will be Jacob’s first head coaching job.
NORTH STAR CHARTER HUSKIES
OUT: None
IN: Nick Hagiperos
For the first time in school history, North Star Charter (located in Eagle) will play varsity football. Nick Hagiperos has been entrusted with establishing the Huskies’ program, and he brings 14 years of coaching in California to the position. Hagiperos graduated from Morgan Hill’s Ann Sobrato High School in 2009 and played junior college football for two seasons at Gavilan College in Gilroy. His coaching career began in 2011 at his alma mater, where he served as an assistant. In 2014, he spent one season at Independence High in San Jose and served as the head JV coach there. He returned to his hometown of Morgan Hill in 2014 and coached the offensive and defensive linemen at Live Oak High for three seasons. Hagiperos’ next coaching stop came in Watsonville at Monte Vista Christian School. During the 2017 and 2018 seasons, Hagiperos was the defensive coordinator. From there, he returned to Live Oak and spent five seasons as the offensive coordinator and strength coach. Hagiperos and his family moved to Idaho in 2025, and he spent this past season serving as the offensive and defensive line coach for Owyhee’s freshman team.
POTLATCH LOGGERS
OUT: Ryan Ball
IN: Cole Thompson
Ryan Ball’s long and storied career came to a close in 2026 with his retirement from all sports. Ball coached football, basketball and baseball for more than 30 years at both Kamiah and Potlatch. Ball won three state football championships (two as an assistant, one as a head coach in 2012 at Kamiah), and also qualified for five state basketball championship games. Cole Thompson graduated from Potlatch in 2017 and was a standout wide receiver for the Loggers. Thompson started as an assistant baseball and basketball coach at Potlatch before teaching junior high and high school math abroad in Thailand for a year in 2024. Thompson returned to Potlatch last season and served as Potlatch’s head baseball coach. The Loggers went 24-2 and claimed the Class 2A state baseball championship.
RIMROCK RAIDERS
OUT: Sam Ward
IN: Ken Higbee
Sam Ward resigned after five seasons as Rimrock’s head coach. He went 15-23 with one playoff appearance and often battled low participation numbers throughout his tenure. A similar problem faces the Raiders’ new head coach, Ken Higbee. Higbee,from Nevada originally, came to Rimrock in January of 2026, when he was hired as the interim superintendent for the Bruneau-Grand View School District. But you’d be hard-pressed to find a coach more qualified for the job. Higbee coached at Nevada’s Pahranagat Valley High from 1996 to 2016, winning 11 state championships in his 22 seasons as head coach, including eight in a row from 2008 to 2015. From the 2008 season opener until the state championship game in 2016, the Panthers claimed 104 consecutive victories. The 104 wins in a row is a national record for eight-man teams, and it’s the third-longest winning streak in overall history.
SHOSHONE INDIANS
OUT: Mike Nunnelee
IN: Mark Sant
Mike Nunnelee led Shoshone to new heights over the past two seasons, registering a 5-4 record in both 2024 and 2025 and leading the Indians to their first playoff berth in nearly 30 years in 2024. Prior to Nunnelee’s success, the last coach to lead Shoshone to the postseason was Mark Sant, who is back for a second tour of duty with the Indians. Sant’s career started as an assistant coach at Shoshone in 1993, and he was eventually promoted to head coach in 1999. He guided the Indians for 14 years, retiring in 2012. During that span, his teams went 58-67.
VALLEY VIKINGS
OUT: Brian Ayers
IN: Jim Rife
No football coach is more synonymous with Valley High School than Brian Ayers. Across two separate stints, Ayers coached the Vikings for 25 years (including 13 as head coach). He also led Valley to a state championship in 2015. The Vikings didn’t have to look far to find Ayers’ replacement, though. Jim Rife is an alum of Valley High, and has served as an assistant coach under Ayers for the past two seasons. Prior to that, Rife was the head coach at Class 1A Hansen, where the Huskies went 11-42 under his guidance from 2017 to 2023.
CLASS 1A
CASTLEFORD WOLVES
OUT: Brock Campbell
IN: Jamie Allen
Brock Campbell departs after one season and a 2-6 overall mark. Jamie Allen is a native of Buhl and has six years of experience as an assistant coach at the varsity, JV and middle school levels. This will be his first head coaching position.
CLARK FORK WAMPUS CATS
OUT: Patrick Young
IN: Andre Johansen
Young had to relinquish his role as Wampus Cats head coach due to other work obligations. In three seasons, the former Clark Fork wide receiver guided the Cats to a record of 6-17. Andre Johansen spent more than 25 seasons coaching football and wrestling in northern California’s San Joaquin Section, including a six-year stint as the head coach at Sacramento’s Christian Brothers High School. Johansen went 35-29-1 during his time at Christian Brothers, and recently moved to North Idaho with his wife, Val. Val is the girls wrestling coach at Class 5A Sandpoint and is also a contributor to IdahoSports.com’s wrestling coverage.
LIGHTHOUSE CHRISTIAN LIONS
OUT: None
IN: Justin Manning
Lighthouse Christian hasn’t fielded a varsity team since 2023. But the Lions haven’t been idle in that time. A total teardown and rebuild was needed, and Justin Manning has quietly been doing just that at the middle school level in both 2024 and 2025. Manning is a 2007 graduate of Lighthouse Christian who quarterbacked the Lions to a 6-3 record during his senior year.
MACKAY MINERS
OUT: Ryan Huish
IN: Justin Ivie
Huish went 9-13 across three seasons at Mackay, and now Justin Ivie enters the arena. Ivie has been a staple of the Mackay community for years, especially when it comes to youth baseball. In fact, a new high school baseball field that opened in 2022 was named in his honor. Now we’ll get to see what Ivie can do with a young, exciting Miners football team.
SHO-BAN CHIEFS
OUT: Lawrence Nai
IN: Adam Reed
Last year, Sho-Ban High, located in Fort Hall, put together and finished a varsity football schedule for the first time since 2019. Turnout and enthusiasm remained high during an 0-7 campaign, which bodes well for future stability at a school long known for its cross country and basketball teams. Lawrence Nai oversaw Sho-Ban’s return to the gridiron, and Adam Reed served as his top assistant. Now Reed slides over one chair as the head coach in 2026. Reed has been teaching and coaching in various capacities at Sho-Ban since 2018.
TROY TROJANS
OUT: Shawn Buchanan
IN: Kyle McCall
Shawn Buchanan resigned after four seasons and an 8-26 record overall. Troy received permission from the IHSAA to compete as a Class 1A school for the next two years (despite having the enrollment of a Class 2A program), and the hope is that Kyle McCall will help engineer a turnaround. McCall quarterbacked the Trojans from 2000 to 2002.