Stow football looked within to find its new head football coach.
The Stow-Munroe Falls City School District promoted Dan Larlham to head coach for the 2026 season. According to Larlham, his position was confirmed at the Board of Education meeting on Feb. 2.
“This is the job I’ve wanted for a long time,” Larlham said. “The facts are I’ve applied for this job four times. We live here in Stow. This is our community. All of my boys have been raised in this house. When I talk about a high school committing football, I can’t think of a better place.”
Larlham takes over for Martin Poder, who resigned in December to take a new job. Poder’s record was 7-33 in four years at Stow.
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“Coach Larlham brings exactly what we were looking for: proven leadership and a strong commitment to developing young athletes,” Stow athletic director Cyle Feldman said. “He is passionate about building authentic relationships with players, and he has a genuine desire to invest in and serve our community. He understands that lasting success starts with culture.”
A 1999 graduate of Walsh Jesuit High School and former player at Baldwin Wallace University, Larlham was Poder’s offensive coordinator in 2024 and defensive coordinator in 2025.
Larlham served as head coach at Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy from 2015-20. He led the Royals to the playoffs his last three seasons, including CVCA’s first playoff win in program history over Salem in 2018.
“I think there was a lot of growth since then,” Larlham said. “You get into situations where you want to be. The truth is, I’ve been chasing this job for a long time.”
Larlham said he knows about the Bulldogs’ recent struggles, as Stow went 2-8 in 2025. He said keeping athletes in the program is of huge importance.
“We always talk about keeping Stow kids in Stow. Good players win games,” Larlham said. “Our program standards won’t change. We’re just going to firmly define that in the offseason.
“Stow football has a strong future ahead, both with our current team and with the kids in our middle school and youth programs. We’re surrounded by a bunch of schools that want our kids. That competition is 24/7/356. We’ve got our work cut out for us.”
The Canton Repository sports department can be contacted via email at sports@cantonrep.com.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Ohio high school football coaching news, Stow hires Dan Larlham
Reporting by Michael Leonard, Akron Beacon Journal / Akron Beacon Journal
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