BREAKING NEWS

Dick Freeman, the Corona del Mar High football coach since 1995, resigned Friday in a meeting with the school’s athletic director and principal.

Freeman, 67-69-2 in 12-plus seasons at the helm of the Sea Kings, will continue to teach science at CdM.

“After teaching at Corona del Mar for 25 years and serving as the head coach since 1995, Dick Freeman has decided to step down from the football program,” Athletic Director Paul Orris said in a statement Friday. “We at CdM owe a wealth of thanks to Dick for the many years of outstanding service that he has given to the school and the program.”

Freeman’s resignation came as a shock to many, including his wife, Kathi, who said “It’s news to me,” when informed of her husband’s decision.

“I had no idea,” said senior quarterback Hunter Alder. “That’s actually really bad news. I always looked at Coach Freeman as one of our greatest leaders, and one of my better coaches, so I didn’t expect that at all.”

“He just felt that it was time,” Orris said. “The football program needed a different focus and energy. And he’s been coaching in some capacity at Corona del Mar for approximately 19 years.”

Freeman teaches a sixth-period weightlifting and conditioning class, and about 30-40 football players are enrolled. Freeman didn’t say anything in the Friday afternoon class to indicate that he had resigned, according to Alder and junior wide receiver/outside linebacker Max Haase, both students in the class.

Freeman’s resignation came on the heels of a 4-5 season in which the team was 1-2 in the Pacific Coast League and missed the CIF Southern Section playoffs for the first time in four seasons.

Haase said team parents were dissatisfied with Freeman, which may have contributed to his resignation.

“He never really mentioned it, but there was a lot of talk about it in other places,” Haase said. “There was a rumor going around, but none of us knew for sure. A lot of [parents] were upset because of our record. Some of them were upset with playing time, and the play-calling.”

There was some controversy surrounding Freeman’s decision to use two quarterbacks the whole season, Alder, and junior Mitch Sands.

Freeman, the defensive coordinator throughout his tenure as head coach, also served as offensive coordinator this season, an extremely rare, if not unprecedented assignment within the ranks of Orange County high school football.

Haase said it was difficult for the team and the quarterbacks to find a rhythm operating in a new offense that was put in this year.

However, no one felt comfortable bringing the problem to Freeman, Haase said.

“It’s your coach, so you can’t really tell him what you should be doing or not doing,” Haase said. “I don’t know if [the quarterbacks] said it to any of the coaches, but they said it to us, the other players.”

The announcement was news to Jeff Brinkley, the coach of Back Bay rival Newport Harbor.

“I’m actually very surprised that he’s resigning,” Brinkley said. “I didn’t really expect him to resign. He has done a good job with the program and been very loyal to that program. He has been there a long time.”

Freeman guided CdM to the playoffs eight times, including the CIF Division V semifinals in 1995, when he took over for then-coach Mark Schuster after three games.

The Sea Kings lost first-round playoff games in their next five postseason appearances after 1995, until reaching the quarterfinals in 2005 and 2006. Freeman was also 2-11 against Back Bay rival Newport Harbor.

Orris said Freeman will assist him in evaluating potential candidates to take over as coach.

One candidate is expected to be Brent Melbon, a former CdM standout who spent the 2007 season coaching the secondary at Orange Coast College.

Melbon was offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at CdM in 2006. He has also been an assistant at Santa Ana Valley and Dana Hills high schools.

•Barry Faulkner contributed to this report