The architect of the John Paul II football program’s rapid rise from a startup program to a SCISA state title contender is ready for his next challenge.
Kevin Wald resigned as the Golden Warriors’ head coach Wednesday to take the same position at Olympic Heights Community High School, a Class 7A school in Boca Raton, Fla.
“It’s bittersweet,” JPII athletics director Matt Dakolios said. “Kevin is a friend. I recruited him here. I’m happy for him, but I hate to see him leave.”
JPII Principal Walt Dupre echoed those sentiments in a message to the school’s faculty and staff.
“We are disappointed to lose someone of Coach Wald’s caliber as a coach, a school administrator, and as a positive male role model,” Dupre said. “However, we are very happy for him to have the opportunity to advance his coaching career because of the tremendous success he achieved at JPII during his three years with us.”
Wald has been a staple on the Lowcountry football scene for the better part of a decade, coaching at Hilton Head Prep for four seasons before taking over JPII’s fledgling program in 2016.
His first season with the Golden Warriors was the program’s first playing 11-man football. After going 0-10 during that inaugural 11-man season, JPII was 6-5 in 2017 and 7-5 last season, when it reached the SCISA 2A championship game.
The search for Wald’s successor has already begun, as Dakolios said he had several inquiries within an hour of the announcement being posted to social media.
“We had 50 applicants when we were 0-10, so I would expect the interest to be high,” Dakolios said.