Stank will leave Bedford

By rbrown
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Updated: March 6, 2019

It appears Derek Stank has coached his final game with the Bedford High School varsity football team.

Stank informed his team Tuesday that he plans to step down as a physical education teacher at Bedford and as the school’s football coach to accept a coaching and teaching position at San Marcos (Calif.) High School. Stank said the deal is 99 percent complete, and he expects to leave Bedford later this month.

“This is family-driven,” Stank said. “My wife is from Oceanside, which is about 15 minutes from San Marcos. The decision to be near her family is a very important thing to us.

“Due to the nature of football and it being a year-round sport these days, I need to relocate as soon as possible. They’re a top-tier program. They won eight games last year and from what I’ve been told they have some talented kids returning.”

Bedford qualified for the Division I playoffs in each of Stank’s four years as the varsity head coach. Bedford won the Division I title twice and reached the semifinals in his two other seasons.

The Bulldogs won titles in 2016, when they beat Exeter in the Division I championship game; and last year, when they completed an unbeaten season by beating Pinkerton Academy to win the Division I title.

“My time here has been amazing,” Stank said. “It’s where I’ve grown as a football coach, and where I’ve grown as a person. It’s been everything you would want in a program. I’m going to miss this place dearly.”

Stank, who played football at the University of New Hampshire, said he flew to California for an interview last Thursday. He was offered a job as a physical education teacher and the coaching position the following day.

He’ll replace Jason Texler, who went 56-28 in seven seasons as San Marcos’ head coach. Texler resigned in January.

The Knights posted an 8-2 record last season, when they dropped a 35-28 decision to Torrey Pines in the semifinals of the Open Division.

Stank spent eight years with the Bedford program. He was an assistant under Kurt Hines for eight years before replacing Hines as head coach. Hines also left Bedford to take a coaching job in California.

“The guys here will be in good hands,” Stank said. “There are some great assistant coaches here and I’m sure they’ll hire a great head coach. They’re going to keep the ball rolling.

“If I could pick Bedford up and move it 3,000 miles away I would.”