Tim McGlynn returns to coaching at Champion
By Dan Hiner
With age comes wisdom, and Tim McGlynn needed to learned that lesson before jumping back into a head coaching position.
McGlynn coached the Jackson-Milton football team for the 2008 and 2009 seasons, but resigned for personal reasons.
But he’s a head coach again after filling the vacancy at Champion last week. He was a member of the Austintown Fitch coaching staff after leaving the Blue Jays, and spent the last two seasons as the assistant head coach at Warren Harding.
McGlynn and his family discussed a potential move back to a head coaching position before taking the job with the Golden Flashes.
“I’ve been an assistant at a couple different places and I was the assistant head football coach over at Warren Harding and had a lot of success,” McGlynn said. “I’ll be honest with ya, I was young back then. I’ve learned a lot since then and I thought it was the right time.”
McGlynn said he learned from his time at Jackson-Milton. He now knows to not rush and try to fix everything at once, instead focusing on organization. He also learned that a better coaching staff can lead to better success.
“The other thing is hiring a really good staff. I didn’t do that when I was at Jackson-Milton,” McGlynn said. “When I was at Jackson-Milton, I hired young guys. And that was my first time, I was young and I thought that was one of the best things I was doing.
“This time around, I’m trying to hire an all-star staff in my eyes.”
McGlynn said his staff is already in order. He wouldn’t elaborate on who will be joining him on the sidelines, but said the assistants are a combination of veteran coaches from the area and some younger coaches from outside the Valley.
He chose Champion because of some recent changes in Champion. He said one reason was the construction of a new school.
“I just like what’s going on over at Champion,” McGlynn said. “They’re building a new school. There’s a bunch of different things going on over there — a bunch of excitement from what I’m seeing through the administration. I think it’s an exciting thing. Any time you get a brand new school, there’s always nice things that come with it.”
He’s taking over a sputtering Champion program which hasn’t finished .500 or better since 2012, and finished 0-10 this season. The Golden Flashes were shutout four times this season, but their worst loss came in a 69-7 beating by Liberty in Week 7.
He wants to take the 2018 season “one game at a time” and focus on turning the program around. McGlynn wants to work on the fundamentals and try to build from the ground up. He said the team shouldn’t be worried about their record next season, but should work towards competing for a league title in the future.
McGlynn said he’s excited to be working with the Champion players and be a part of the program and work with the administration.
“I think I’m a better football coach than I was back then as a young guy. I’ve learned a lot since that experience,” McGlynn said. “I’ve always had a itch for getting back to being a head football coach, but just never thought it was the right time. This opportunity came up and I thought it was a really good opportunity for me and my family.”