After one successful season as head coach at rival Dougherty Valley, Brandon Black is returning to his alma mater, as the new head football coach at Dublin.
The Gaels were led for the past two seasons by Matt Hoefs, who stepped down after his family purchased a home in the Brentwood area and he got a full-time teaching job in the Antioch schools. That opened the door for Black, who returned to the Bay Area from North Carolina in 2015, and spent two years as the defensive coordinator at Dublin.
"Playing at Dublin was special for me, and getting back there as a head coach has always been a goal," Black said. "It has always been a special place for me, and I have always longed for the opportunity to lead this program."
Black made an impact in his one year at the helm of the Dougherty Valley program, guiding the Wildcats to five wins and a berth in the Division I playofffs, after they had accumulated two wins in the previous two seasons combined.
"Last year's experience was so valuable, and my growth as a result of that is tremendous," Black added. "The administration at Dougherty is great, and I had a lot of support building my culture. There is so much I learned in just one year there, and I owe a lot to them for that opportunity."
Black, who has been teaching at Amador Elementary in Dublin, played for the Gaels from 1991-1994, and is a 1995 graduate of the school. One of the key members of his staff will be one of his former high school coaches - Warren Parker, who is a counselor on campus and will coordinate the Dublin passing game. Dom Revlez and Bodey Dressler are also key members of Black's staff, as the Gaels look to hit the ground running and continue building on the strides made under Hoefs, as his tenure included a playoff win over California in the 2016 season.
"I'm real excited about the entire athletic department and administration here at Dublin," Black said. "I'm looking forward to a great season ahead."
With Black's transition from Dougherty Valley to Dublin, the Wildcats are now seeking a new head coach, which means at least three EBAL schools will feature new leaders for the 2019 season.
Familiar name takes over Livermore sideline
Former Dublin and Miramonte head coach John Wade was announced recently as the new head coach at Livermore, where Terry Butler led the Cowboys into the playoffs in each of the past two seasons.
Wade has been a head high school coach for 18 seasons, with 134 career victories, six league titles and two section titles. He has been an on-campus teacher at Livermore for the past two years, and will be the program's third head coach in the past four seasons, after current Liberty coach Ryan Partridge preceded Butler.
Wade won 34 games in six years as head coach at Dublin, from 2011-2016, including an NCS Division II semifinal appearance in 2011. He led Miramonte to double-digit win totals on four different occasions.
Honor Group focuses on East Bay
The 2019 Honor Bowl in Northern California will have an all East Bay flavor, and in fact the three-game feature has been re-named the East Bay Honor Bowl.
Amador Valley and Campolindo will square off at 1 pm on Saturday, Sep. 7, followed by Heritage against host James Logan at 4 pm, and capped by the marquee game on the schedule, a rematch of last year's Open Division semifinal between Liberty and Clayton Valley.
Interestingly enough, the Saturday trio of games will provide a pair of teams a quick scout of each other, as Amador Valley and Heritage play the next week.
