SPARTA – Highland athletic director Mike Delaney didn’t have to look far to find his next football coach. Turns out he was already in the building.
As of the Wednesday, Feb. 10, school board meeting, Ty Stover has been hired to fill the position.
“We ended up with 30-plus applicants, which was a really good field,” Delaney said. “Then we cut it down to three finalists. All three were all really good candidates. But I think what stood out for Ty is his connection to our kids, obviously.
“Also, his energy … and I can’t understate that. His work ethic and energy, and his desire to help our kids grow and for our program to improve really came across in the interview.”
Stover had no trouble showing his excitement.
“This is a great opportunity,” Stover said. “I’m so excited. Me and my family are just happy to be a part of this community and the high school. I just love it here.”
He replaces Matt Jones, who resigned in December after going 8-11 over two seasons. Stover, who is also an an assistant principal at Highland High School, was Jones’ defensive coordinator over those two seasons. Stover is also an assistant boys basketball coach.
“I’m just excited to — hopefully — move the program forward,” Stover said. “Past coaches have done a really great job here of setting a strong foundation.
“Hopefully, coming from a little bit different background, I can a bring a little bit different flavor to the program. But also, move the program forward and help build the kids to become responsible community members and responsible student athletes here at Highland High School.”
Delaney did not view this as a cost-cutting measure during a pandemic.
“We had positions available,” he said. “We wanted somebody in the building. So when it came down to choosing Ty, that really wasn’t that much of a concern. If we would have decided to go in another direction, we would have — most likely — been able to find that person a position.”
This will be Stover’s first time as a head coach. Before Highland, he served as an assistant for Scott Wetzel — first at Big Walnut and most recently at Westerville North.
Wetzel won a state title at Big Walnut in 2007, though Stover was between stints at that point.
Stover is charged with handling the transition from the Knox Morrow Athletic Conference to the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference.
At Division IV, the Fighting Scots are the biggest school in the KMAC. They’ll be a little closer in numbers with the MOAC, where four of the seven current members are Division IV (Shelby, Ontario, Galion and Clear Fork), one is Division II (Marion Harding), one is Division III (River Valley) and the other is Division V (Pleasant).
“I think the program’s in really good shape right now in terms of numbers, in terms of participation, in terms of how it’s seen both in our district and outside our district,” Delaney said. “But I think in terms of moving forward, we’d like to have more numbers. Playing against larger schools, that depth is going to be important.”
