LANCASTER – The Lancaster football program is starving for success. The Golden Gales haven’t had a winning season since 2018.
On Thursday, Jan. 8, the program took a huge step in what it hopes will not only change the culture but also build a program the community can be proud of. The Lancaster Eagle-Gazette has confirmed the school will hire Bloom-Carroll coach Jeremy McKinney, pending board approval on Jan. 26.
McKinney has taken the Bulldogs to new heights in the past four seasons. He expects to do the same at Lancaster and is ready to restore a rich football tradition.
McKinney grew up in Lancaster and is a 1999 graduate of Fisher Catholic. He and his family still live in Lancaster, and he understands what high school football means to the community. He is ready to usher in a new era and take the program to the next level.
When the job opened, after Bryan Schoonover resigned last month after going 17-37 in five seasons, McKinney knew deep down he had to apply for the job.
“I think growing up in Lancaster, coaching there and teaching there, you know the tradition and the potential of the Lancaster Gales football program,” McKinney said Thursday. “My wife teaches there. We live in town, it made a lot of sense for us, as a family, to go all-in and try to help continue the tradition of Lancaster football.
“Our goal is to have a new era of the tradition to build upon what was before us and try to take it to levels perhaps it has never been to. As a program, it boasts over 600 all-time wins, featuring former high school All-Americans, dozens of All-Ohioans, college football players, NFL players, college Hall of Famers, national champions, and Super Bowl champions, so the tradition is well-established. The town loves football, and it’s a football town. We want to make our mark on that tradition and not only uphold but add to it.”
McKinney was an assistant coach for 20 years at Fisher Catholic, Fairfield Union, Lancaster, and Bloom-Carroll before taking over as head coach of the Bulldogs in 2022. In his first season, Bloom-Carroll finished as OHSAA Division III state runner-up with a 14-2 overall record.
In his second season, Bloom-Carroll won its second straight Mid-State League-Buckeye Division title and reached the playoffs’ regional semifinals. In four total seasons, McKinney guided the Bulldogs to a sparkling 41-12 overall record, four MSL-Buckeye Division titles and nine wins in the playoffs.
McKinney coaches with a purpose and he expects a lot of himself and his players. He said his message to his new players will be simple.
“You set high standards and high expectations, and then you hold everyone to those high standards and high expectations,” McKinney said. “I don’t think it will take much to look at the success and the tradition of the program to realize that it’s far from that. It’s just a matter of getting everybody in alignment and building from there.”
It has been a whirlwind the last couple of days for McKinney. His first order of business is meeting with his current players next week.
“I’m excited to meet with the players on Monday, and then I would like to talk to the seniors and go through each class and then meet with the guys one-on-one and really get to know them,” McKinney said. “The key to coaching is building relationships with them. That’s where the wins and the success come from. This is all about them. Once you instill that into your program, all the other stuff takes care of itself. Our culture is all about family. We are going to find out quickly that it’s not going to be about any of us as individuals. It’s going to be about us, collectively, and how we can serve each other.”
McKinney also plans on bringing in his own coaching staff.
“We have a lot of guys coming with us, so there will be a lot of newer faces on the coaching staff,” McKinney said. “I was fortunate to work for seven different head coaches, and you learn something from all of them. You have to show you love your players and genuinely mean it. We want our guys to believe in us, and we believe in them, and that we truly form those bonds.
“Probably the most important thing is to be true to yourself and not to try to be something you are not. I have coached for some very successful guys. I’m not those guys, and I don’t want to be those guys, but you can learn from them, so being genuine and truly loving your guys because of who they are and not necessarily what they can do on a football field, is huge.”
Tom Wilson is a sports reporter for the Lancaster Eagle-Gazette. Contact him at 740-689-5150 or via email at twilson@gannett.com for comments or story tips. Follow him on X at twil2323.
This article originally appeared on Lancaster Eagle-Gazette: Lancaster football goes all in with hiring of Jeremy McKinney as coach
Reporting by Tom Wilson, Lancaster Eagle-Gazette / Lancaster Eagle-Gazette
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
