Drake Names Ethan Hough Head Football Coach

Despite the fact he’s never been a head coach at the varsity level before, it turns out the new football coach isn’t new at all.

, a former Drake quarterback who had been named interim head coach following ’s resignation in early July, was formally named the Pirates’ head coach Thursday night.

It didn’t take Kenilvort long to applaud the decision.

“I’m very excited about it,” assured Kenilvort, who was forced to step down after three years at the Drake helm because of work-related issues.

“He went into the summer assuming he would get the job and he’s been doing a great job. He’s installed his offense. He’s found a defensive coordinator. He’s taken off running. He’s already laid down the law with some kids. I’m impressed.”

Hough, a Drake Class of 1992 graduate who was San Rafael’s junior varsity coach last season, was hired by Kenilvort in the spring to be his chief assistant at Drake. When Kenilvort had to step down, he thought the transition to Hough was an obvious one.

That became clear to the Drake decision-makers as well when they considered the fact Hough was more than just a JV coach at San Rafael. He had been involved in the fundraising, communications and administrative side of the Bulldogs’ entire football program, so he believes he’s ready to take on the head-coaching job at Drake, even if it’s on short notice.

“This is a mini-dream come true,” he boasted while also thanking Kenilvort for his backing. “I haven’t been part of the Drake community for 20 years. I’m excited to come back. I have a lot of great memories from high school. I’m grateful to the faculty for giving me the opportunity.

“At San Rafael, I had an opportunity to see all the things that go into being a head coach that aren’t the X’s and O’s. I’m confident I know what I’m doing.”

Kenilvort labels Hough “a teacher.”

“He really knows how to handle the kids. That’s a great asset for him,” the former coach praised. “He doesn’t get really excited. He’s able to maintain the calm.”

During his stint as interim head coach this summer, Hough reached out to former Novato defensive coordinator Glenn Weston, who was out of coaching. Even without knowing who the head coach would be, Weston agreed to join the Pirates’ staff as the defensive decision-maker.

Now Drake is in the enviable position of having Hough, as head coach, call the shots on offense, while Weston handles the defense.

“One thing I’m very excited about is that Glenn Weston agreed to come on board to be the defensive coordinator,” Hough noted. “I knew we needed to have as many qualified coaches as possible to turn the program around. That was a big concern of mine.

“I wasn’t going to be able to pull away someone from a program who was already coaching this late. But Glenn just so happened to be not coaching this year. We’re very fortunate to have him.”

Hough is confident the Pirates, who won a total of just nine games in the past three seasons, will be ready to go when they take the field in less than a month (Sept. 2) for their opener at San Rafael.

“As soon as I became the interim (head coach), installed the offense that I had been running at San Rafael, because I knew if I was going to get the job, I wanted to have my best foot forward,” he said. “Now it’s up to the coaching staff and the kids to all buy in. It won’t be an excuse that it’s too late. We can make the most of this season.”