Lehigh football coach Casey Creehan steps down; Lightning to have third coach in eight months
One of Lee County's new football coaching hires has already stepped down.
Casey Creehan, which was Lehigh's choice to succeed former coach James Chaney, is no longer coaching the program, the Lee County School District confirmed.
"It was a mutual and amicable decision," Lee County School District spokesperson Rob Spicker wrote in an email.
Creehan's departure comes after Lehigh's administration conducted a national search to replace Chaney, now the Director of Player Development at Colorado alongside longtime friend and teammate Deion Sanders. The school received upwards of 30 résumés with that list being trimmed down to six candidates after a lengthy interview process.
Lehigh Athletic Director Ernesto Adamo did not respond to multiple requests seeking comment.
The Lightning had to borrow knee pads from Sarasota Riverview in their spring game on May 17, showing there may have been some behind-the-scenes organizational issues. The Rams beat Lehigh, 35-21.
Creehan acknowledged that the program was not where he wanted it to be going into their spring game just two weeks ago, and was very candid about where he felt his team was going into the summer before the season commences in the fall.
"Yes, very," Creehan said. "We didn't progress as fast as we wanted. That's all I want to say."
After announcing Creehan's hire in February, Adamo raved about Creehan and the direction the Lightning football program was headed, citing his personality and passion for the game of football.
"All you've got to do is meet him to know that he has this infectious personality to him," Adamo said. "You can just tell. We're moving in a positive direction. It was a long process. We had tons of résumés coming in.
"After we had the interviews, it was clear as day, as soon as the process was over, that we had found our guy."
That process will start from scratch once again, as the school is searching for stability. Creehan's successor will be Lehigh's third head coach in under eight months. The job was posted by the Lee County School District on June 3 with a close date of June 17.
Follow Southwest Florida Sports Writer Alex Martin on Twitter: @NP_AlexMartin. For the best sports coverage in Southwest Florida, follow @newspresssports and @ndnprepzone on Instagram.
This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Lehigh football coach Casey Creehan out as coach after four months
