A small school coach in Bergen County, NJ was fired last week, and the reason he was reportedly provided by administration is a bizarre one.
Jim Cleary, who led Park Ridge HS (NJ) this past season to a 4-4-1 record, told the NJ Advance Media team earlier this week that he was let go following a meeting with the school administration where they would not support his plan for an off season workout program that included weightlifting.
Yes. You read that right.
He previously spent two seasons as the school's defensive coordinator before being elevated to head coach.
Back when he interviewed for the head coaching job, the off season workout program was clearly laid out with the same goal every coach in the country has - to get his team stronger and become the best versions of themselves to be in position to go compete each Friday night in the fall.
But during a recent meeting with administrators, where Cleary laid out expectations that those not involved in a winter sport should participate in the workouts, the administration pushed back in a big way NJ Advance Media shared.
“We were discussing offseason weightlifting programs, and I laid out in the interview process that I expect all the boys who are not doing a winter sport to work out."
“We put together a weightlifting program for them. I’m working with a strength and conditioning coach, and pretty much the administration said that they did not want me to be pressuring the boys to work out. If they didn’t want to work out they didn’t have to."
Cleary, like any head coach in the country with the drive and vision to build a successful program, disagreed.
"I was called into a meeting and was told my expectations were too much for a small Group 1 school. That I would be a better fit at a Group 4 or a parochial, and they didn’t want to make that commitment.”
Veteran coaches will read this and immediately have the thought that Cleary dodged a bullet, as an administration that won't support the most basic of off season expectations will prove to be a major headache down the road.
Let Cleary's story serve as a reminder about being very thorough when taking any job, any coaching job, and especially head coaching jobs. If the administration isn't 1,000% on board, it's not the right place for you.