El Toro’s List of Candidates Down to the Final Four

We interrupt this basketball season to bring you up to date on one of life’s great mysteries.

It has befuddled the Orange County sports community; coaches everywhere are locked in spasms of speculation:

“Who Will Be the Next Football Coach at El Toro?”

Ever since Bob Johnson resigned as head honcho Dec. 4 after 13 years on the job, area coaches have been taking dives into the prediction pool: Who will be the next Charger in Charge? Sixteen applied for the position, nine were interviewed. And then . . .

There were four:

Mike Milner, head coach at Fountain Valley; Marty Spalding, El Toro assistant in charge of offensive and defensive lines; Roger Takahashi, head coach at La Quinta, and Bill Whipple, El Toro defensive coordinator.

Principal Don Martin says he doesn’t expect to make a decision until the end of this week--and that will be pending school board approval.

Still, the four ought to be congratulated just for surviving the early rounds. Judge Bork didn’t face this kind of scrutiny.

First, the applicants were questioned by a selection committee that included not only administration types but two representatives from the Charger Booster Club.

Can you say “par-ent-al in-volve-ment?”

Next, El Toro sent an investigation team to the outside applicants’ campuses to interview principals, athletic directors, assistant coaches, athletes, activities directors and band directors (no kidding).

We hope cafeteria workers didn’t feel left out.

Round 3 was back at El Toro, more intensive interviews, some lasting more than three hours. They were quizzed on Xs and Os, Ps and Qs, and no doubt their ABCs and 1-2-3s.

“We’re taking this very seriously,” Martin said. “No one’s going to accuse us of not doing our job.”

‘Tis true. Now, as Martin spends his days in decision-making limbo, we present our own scouting report. Here are the candidates, in alphabetical order:

MIKE MILNER

He’s qualified (his 1988 Fountain Valley team won the Southern Section Division I title), experienced (12 years as head coach) and highly respected. He’s also a close friend of Bob Johnson’s.

In fact, Milner is such a bud that he is the godfather of Bob’s first son/quarterback, Bret. Johnson bestowed this honor when Milner was his assistant at Los Amigos in the early ‘70s.

On the flip side, Milner has had two lackluster seasons since 1988. And there are rumors that budget cuts in the Saddleback Valley Unified School District might not fit with Milner’s salary demands.

Milner also denied being interested in the job for weeks. Last week, he would not return phone calls.

MARTY SPALDING

El Toro is known for its linemen, and Spalding has produced some great ones, most notably his son, Scott, a high school All-American who is now a senior at UCLA.

Like the Raiders’ Art Shell, Spalding is a players’ coach, characterized as a levelheaded, fair and immensely dedicated workaholic. He came to El Toro in 1979, leaving a head coaching position at Canyon Country Canyon.

His down side, some say, is his straightforward manner, that he’s often too outspoken and too honest for his own good. High profile El Toro might want more of Teflon type.

ROGER TAKAHASHI

With no past or present ties to the school or its staff, Takahashi is the outsider. But he has plenty of pluses to keep Martin interested.

Offensively, La Quinta’s fifth-year coach is one of the county’s sharpest minds. He’s personable, honest, smart and articulate. His players love him. But many people are quick to point out that he comes from the Garden Grove League. Some think his leap to the almighty South Coast could be treacherous.

But, hey, did anyone notice that Los Amigos stop on the resumes of Johnson and Milner? The Garden Grove League has been a springboard for several top coaches.

BILL WHIPPLE

Whipple took over the defensive coordinator’s job from John Johansen, the boys’ athletic director, last fall and did a great job. No one can complain about El Toro’s defense.

Like Spalding, he’s well-liked by the athletes and faculty. He’s down-to-earth, a motivator and has been part of the El Toro coaching family since 1983, when Johnson hired him to coach defensive backs.

But he’s also the only one of the four without head coaching experience. And he said he would stay at El Toro no matter who gets the job. Such honesty could either help or hurt his cause.

Of course, who knows what the band director had to say?