Cabrillo High is searching for a new leader of the varsity football program, as athletic director Dan Troup told the Lompoc Record following Monday’s Northern Santa Barbara County Athletic Round Table that the head coaching position has re-opened.
Troup said Don Willis chose to step down as CHS head coach last week due to what he called “personal reasons.” Willis – who was named CHS’s head coach in 2014 - was arrested on suspicion of DUI on Sept. 23 and was not on the sidelines for the last five games of the season, which saw the Conquistadores close out the year by winning two of their last five games and ending the season at 4-6.
After the season, there was speculation about Willis perhaps returning for a fourth season with the Conqs, but opted to part ways with the school and program he once played for in the early 1990s.
“Don made the decision to resign,” Troup confirmed to The Record. “It was a tough meeting. Don’s a good guy. But he felt it was the right decision for him and the program. He didn’t go much into the reasons for himself but again, he felt it was the right decision to make for the program.”
Troup added that the players reacted strongly to Willis’s decision.
“They were upset. But they showed they could persevere. They had a goal and the goal was to have the best season they could possibly have and try to win as many games as they possibly could,” Troup said. “Yeah it was a shock for them. They weren’t ready for it. But that’s a curveball we tend to get and we had a fantastic interim coach step up in J.J. (Willis), who took the bull by the horns and got the guys focused on what was ahead then finished the season strong.”
With J.J. Willis directing the Conqs, Cabrillo scored an upset win over Morro Bay on the road (34-14) and trounced Pioneer Valley (39-7) on senior night.
Troup said J.J. Willis is welcome to apply for the open position, but the A.D. is allowing coaches from outside of the Lompoc Valley to apply.
“We’re getting the word out and looking for applicants and any interested and experienced football coaches. Then we’ll have a committee make the selection,” Troup said. “We want to have a coach in place probably no later than the end of January, the sooner the better.”
Cabrillo will have its seventh head coach for the varsity football team since 2000, as the Conqs have gone through Steve Haskins, Patrick Foster, Don Cross, Craig Knowles, Don Willis and J.J. Willis — in that order.
