Good Coaches Are Hard to Find and Just as Hard to Keep : Dilemma: Some schools have had to drop teams or scale back programs because they couldn’t find qualified people to fill positions.

There are times when Larry Doyle, boys’ athletic director at Marina High School, would like to hang a “help wanted” sign in front of the school.

NEEDED: Boys’ volleyball coach. Must be willing to work long hours for low pay. Experience preferred. Apply inside.

Doyle hasn’t quite reached those extremes, but he and other athletic directors in Orange County are finding it difficult to fill coaching vacancies for some sports.

It’s not an easy job finding a qualified volleyball coach these days. Doyle is looking for someone to coach a team that will likely be ranked among the top five in the county. He has received only a few applications.

And Doyle’s not alone in his search. Three other schools are in need of volleyball coaches--Servite, Century and Corona del Mar, one of the county’s top teams. Several other top teams--Edison, Woodbridge, Laguna Beach and University--recently hired coaches after long searches.

The season begins Feb. 18. Doyle’s not sure what he’s going to do.

“Volleyball has gotten so big so fast,” Doyle said. “The level of play in the county is so good and the coaches do so well they’re being snapped up by the colleges. Some of the former players are finding money on pro tours and not going into coaching. There aren’t as many volleyball players as football or basketball players to draw from.”

Athletic directors are looking not only for volleyball coaches but also to fill positions for sports such as water polo, soccer, tennis, track and field and cross-country.

And they say there are several reasons they’re struggling:

--Southern Section rules that limit club coaches from working with players with high school eligibility remaining during the school year.

--A trend among some schools to hire only faculty members as coaches instead of walk-ons, who are nonstaff members.

--Most walk-on coaches staying only one or two years at a school, then moving on, creating a revolving door for some positions.

--Specialization. Two- and three-sport coaches are becoming as rare as the three-sport athlete.

The section office publishes a monthly flyer posting coaching openings. The December issue listed 14 varsity openings and 20 at the junior varsity, freshman and sophomore levels.

Mark Cunningham, University boys’ athletic director, describes coaching searches as “a constant hassle.”

“It will only grow, too,” he said. “No one is in coaching for the money and it’s a heck of a time commitment.”

COPING WITHOUT COACHES

The very existence of some teams is being threatened by the lack of coaches. According to a 1987 Southern Section study, 61 schools dropped at least one sport because they couldn’t find a qualified coach.

Santa Ana dropped water polo last fall because Bill Ross, the boys’ athletic director, couldn’t find a coach. Ross wanted to hire someone who also taught, but he had no teaching openings.

“There aren’t that many water polo coaches out there anymore,” Ross said. “What we want is someone with a teaching credential, not a walk-on.

“We just didn’t find a qualified coach for the team, and we didn’t want to go piecemeal with the thing. We have a beautiful facility, a gorgeous pool and everything, and no one is using it.”

Ross said Santa Ana also might drop its boys’ and girls’ swimming programs if a coach can’t be found.

“I’m still looking for swimming and water polo coaches,” he said. “(I) get some phone calls, and I’ve got some feelers out on some possibilities.”

In order to save programs, some administrators have taken matters into their own hands.

Rich Schaaf, Santa Margarita boys’ athletic director, couldn’t find a coach for the girls’ tennis team last fall, so he took over.

“I had a woman to coach them in the summer, but her husband got transferred to a job (out of the area) and she couldn’t do it,” Schaaf said. “I tried the local colleges and everyone I could think of to find a replacement. I went out the first day of practice and said to the kids, ‘I’m it for now.’ ”

Three months later, Schaaf was still coaching. The Eagles reached the section tournament, losing in the quarterfinals.

THE NEED

Coaches used to be versatile. The football coach usually coached track in the spring. The boys’ and girls’ volleyball teams usually were coached by the same person.

Not anymore.

Specialization has forced athletic directors to hire more coaches.

“The programs are becoming so sophisticated,” Schaaf said. “By the time football is over, the coaches are burned out for the rest of the year. It takes until next August to get going.

“Then you have spring practice and summer (passing) league. Basketball has become the same way. Basketball goes into half of the (spring sports’) season. It’s making it harder and harder for coaches. The days of people coaching two or three sports has long gone by.”

But some school districts have found an answer to the problem. John Klink, boys’ athletic director at Dana Hills, said the Capistrano Unified school district offers a $1,000 stipend to people who coach two sports.

“This is the third year for the stipend, and it has worked well,” Klink said. “It keeps the old coaches around and encourages the younger coaches to coach more than one sport.”

New schools such as Century and Santa Margarita also have increased the number of openings. In 1984, there were 10,468 coaching jobs (7,056 boys, 3,412 girls) in the Southern Section. Estimates today show about a 15% increase.

High turnover rates, especially among walk-on coaches, add to the number of openings. For example, Edison Athletic Director Lyman Clower recently hired his fifth boys’ volleyball coach in the past seven years.

“All of the athletic directors have been laughing about this search for a volleyball coach,” Clower said. “We’ve had a tough time keeping coaches here the last few years. Finding swimming, water polo and wrestling coaches is tough. Cross-country is murder. We scramble every year.”

Charlie Brande, former boys’ and girls’ volleyball coach at Corona del Mar, said the coaching supply just doesn’t meet the demand.

“There just aren’t a lot of volleyball coaches around,” he said. “Most of the good ones would rather coach at the club level because of the restrictions the Southern Section has on coaching clubs and high school players.”

Brande, who received a one-year suspension for violating those restrictions, said the rule could eventually force coaches to choose between coaching at the club or high school level.

Dale Flickinger, who replaced Brande at Corona del Mar, said the rule “could have a drastic effect on volleyball in Southern California.”

THE MONEY

When Flickinger took over at Corona del Mar last fall, he wasn’t sure of the time demands he was about to undertake.

With practices, games and an 80-mile round-trip commute, the walk-on coach was working between 25-30 hours a week.

Flickinger, an engineer at Hughes Aircraft, coached for more than the money. He enjoyed working with kids and wanted to help out Brande, a longtime friend.

It’s a good thing, too. Flickinger coached the Sea Kings to the Southern Section 5-A and state Division I championships, but he made only 75 cents an hour more than minimum wage of $4.25. He earned about $145 a week during the Sea Kings’ 12-week season.

Most head coaches make about $1,700 or $1,800 a season, and an assistant makes about $800. School districts set the pay for public school coaches, while wages at private schools are set by the diocese.

“It’s hard to pay someone just $1,700 or $800 for this,” Schaaf said. “Look at the time commitment.”

Said Kathie Maier, girls’ athletic director at Cypress, “It sounds terrible to say, but they (college students who coach) can work at McDonald’s and make more money.”

WALK-ONS VS. TEACHERS

John Coppage, walk-on girls’ soccer coach at Esperanza, describes high school administrators’ attitudes toward walk-on coaches this way: “They would like you to think these are winos who they’ve pulled off the street.”

Walk-on coaches are generally regarded as utilitymen, people who can fill a position for a brief period. Their value is usually short-term. They’re temporary help.

Walk-ons are generally not a part of the educational process. They’re college students or people who have other jobs.

“We never had lot of walk-ons at Santa Ana,” Ross said. “Most of our people have always been here. I have nothing against walk-ons, but generally speaking, when you have a walk-on, you have a lot of problems walk on with him. The walk-ons have no relationship with the kids on campus.”

Cunningham said University employs 21 head coaches. Only two varsity teams--water polo and soccer--are coached by walk-ons.

“We want to hire a teacher first,” Cunningham said. “We want to hire someone on campus so they can monitor the kids’ grades. It saves you a million problems without a walk-on. A guy off campus can’t check grades, and it’s hard to get ahold of them.”

Sometimes the problems get serious. For example, a girls’ soccer coach at El Modena was fired a few years ago for taking team mambers to a pizza parlor and serving them beer. Another coach was fired for dating team members.

Under State Board of Education rules, walk-ons must complete courses in first aid, cardiopulmonary resuscitation and adolescent psychology before becoming head coaches. They also must have previous coaching experience.

In addition, some school districts and athletic directors meet with the walk-on coaches to discuss rules, administrative duties, coaching philosophy and handling emergency situations.

“Five or six years ago there weren’t so many demands on them,” Schaaf said. “Now they have to know CPR or have a Class Two license to drive a van. The pay hasn’t gone up much. At a school like ours, where there’s so much going on, it’s tough to be a walk-on.”

Although walk-ons aren’t always a popular choice for athletic directors, they often are a last resort.

Said Doyle, “In our situation, we would have someone come in and coach our volleyball team before we would close shop. The current and past administrations have talked about closing sports if didn’t have a coach. You just can’t send them out with a whistle or a watch and say, ‘Hey, you’re the coach.’ ”

Prep Coaching Opportunities

Finding coaches for some Orange County high school teams can test an athletic director’s patience. A sample of some of the current openings at county high schools.

Cross-Country: Fountain Valley High School cross country coach. For information, contact Athletic Director Mike Henigan (926-3301). Volleyball: Century High School varsity boys’ volleyball coach. Coach needed for new program. For information contact Bob Halford (568-7000). Corona del Mar High School varsity boys’ volleyball coach. Four-month commitment. Opportunity to coach one of the top teams in Orange County. For information, contact Athletic Director Jerry Jelnick at (760-3315). Marina High School varsity boys’ volleyball coach. Chance to coach one of the top teams in the county. For information, call Larry Doyle at (893-6571). Swimming: Santa Ana High School boys’ and girls’ varsity swimming coach. School has one of the top swimming facilities in the area. Contact Athletic Director Bill Ross (558-5811). Troy High School aquatic coach (water polo and swimming). For information, contact Principal Warren Stephenson (220-4040). Water Polo: Santa Ana High School varsity water polo coach. For information, contact Athletic Director Bill Ross (558-5811).

Source: High school athletic directors and principals.