Noonan resigns Eagles’ post

Barry Faulkner

Jay Noonan has resigned as Estancia High football coach, ending a

two-year reign in which the Eagles went 1-18.

Noonan, who informed Eagle players of his decision Tuesday

afternoon, cited personal reasons for his resignation and declined to

elaborate.

“This past Thanksgiving, I spent some time with my family and my

priorities have changed, for reasons I can only describe as

personal,” Noonan said.

In a statement, Noonan said he was grateful to players, parents

and staff and that he was proud of four things:

* “The program is in better condition now than when I arrived and

we had to overcome some incredible obstacles together.

* “As a coaching staff, we prepared our players as best we could.

* “The players always gave us their best efforts.

* “We involved more people, parents, players, sponsors and

boosters than had been involved in many years.”

Noonan expressed special gratitude to his players, whom, he said,

“gave me a thrill every time we played.”

“I know they can be successful and I challenged them today to do

something successful every day to make that happen.”

Noonan also said he was thankful for the “great support” he

received from the administration. And, though he regrets leaving the

program, he wanted to do so in a timely fashion, in order to provide

time to find a new coach.

Noonan did not rule out a return to coaching, but is unsure what

role that may entail, or when such a return may occur.

He said he will remain on staff as a science teacher at Estancia.

Noonan also said none of his assistant coaches are interested in

applying for the position, which he assumed after Dave Perkins left

to become head coach at Costa Mesa in the spring of 2001.

“It is not an easy decision, because I believe the program is on

the upswing,” Noonan said. “I have enjoyed my time there and I’ve

developed some great relationships with some of the young people. But

I felt it was proper to make this decision now, so (administrators)

can look for a new coach.”

Noonan said his best wishes are with the Estancia football

program.

“I’m confident we built a very good foundation and I’m confident

the players are finally in a position to take over the program and

that they want this to succeed,” Noonan said. “As soon as kids start

to care more about themselves than you do, that’s when they start to

win, and I think we’re finally there.”