NAPA, CA - Jesus “Chuy” Martinez already knows the Napa High football program very well. Now, the former Indians' student-athlete will be moving in as the head coach.
“We pursued Coach Martinez because we believed not only in his ability to coach football but in his ability to help bring our community together,” Napa High principal Annie Petrie said in a press release. “He knows first-hand the heart and soul of Napa High and he has a vision for Napa High Football. We are thrilled that we reached a place where our community can come together and unite around our students.”
“I am looking forward to getting back to coaching, getting the kids back on the field,” Martinez said. “They have been motivated and have been working hard in the weight room. They are hungry and they want to get back to playing football and being a team.”
Martinez takes over for former coach Troy Mott. Mott will still be involved in the program as a special consultant/mentor to Martinez. The Napa Valley Unified School District must approve Petrie’s recommendation at its June 1st meeting.
“A key factor for us in the search and hiring process was Troy Mott coming on board to support our next head coach and in helping bring the staff together,” said Thomas Sims, Napa's new athletic director starting in the 2017-18 school year. “Troy will serve as a consultant to Chuy and the entire football staff in working for what is best for our student-athletes.”
Napa has won the Monticello Empire League title the last three seasons. The season was in danger of being cancelled if there was no head coach in place by June 15th.
The Napa Valley Unified School District had stated that they would have helped players who wished to play football transfer to another school inside or out of the district. The players wouldn’t have faced any penalty if this had happened.
Martinez is a 2004 Napa High graduate and played four years of Napa High football, including as the starting quarterback on the 2003 team that made it to the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section semifinals, under then-coach Jerry Dunlap. He is a police officer employed at Napa State Hospital. He and his wife live in Napa and have two children, a two-year-old and a six-year-old.
“I will continue to build upon the ‘family’ tradition that is the foundation for our football program. One of my mottos is ‘Discipline, Commitment, and Effort,’” Martinez said. “If you can live by those three words and know what they represent, you can overcome anything. When you do the little things right, you will be successful not only on the field but off the field and that is ultimately what Napa High Football strives for.”
The program has had to deal with allegations of hazing since November, and the Napa Police Department, and Napa Valley Unified School District each did their own investigations.
“We are looking to Coach Martinez to lead our action plan to ensure that we can begin to heal our football community and support the safety and well-being of our student-athletes,” Petrie said. “Our top priority is to educate our student-athletes about the role of character and leadership in all that they do, and how to speak up for what is right. We will focus on citizenship, as well as sportsmanship.”
The Indians are slated to begin the season August 25th against Pitman-Turlock. The 2017-18 school year will be Napa’s final year in the Sac-Joaquin Section before going to the CIF North Coast Section in 2018-19.
