Schultz leaving Centreville for Mattawan head football coaching job
CENTREVILLE — It was not a decision Jerry Schultz made lightly.
He cares for the people, and students, in Centreville. But when it came down to it, the decision made was best for him and his family moving forward.
Schultz has accepted the head varsity football coaching post at Mattawan High School.
"It was a really difficult decision, I've built a lot of relationships here in Centreville that I hope will be long-lasting," Schultz said. "It was extremely difficult. But this is one of the those schools I had talked with my wife about where if an opportunity ever presented itself, we would talk about it and consider it. She gave me the go ahead to apply."
Schultz is currently the dean of students for Centreville Public Schools. He confirmed to the Journal that he will continue to work in that capacity through the end of the school year.
"I have to finish out my duties there, so I am going to hang around until the end of the school year," he said. "It's not fair as an administrator to just bolt. There are responsibilities post-school that I have to take care of as well. It's not fair that I just dip and leave."
Schultz said his family will continue to live in the area. He joked about driving 35 minutes to work in his early Centreville years, so driving to Mattawan from St. Joseph County should not be a problem.
Participation for the football team at Centreville was rarely a problem for Schultz. He did say that will be one of the more important first steps at his new post in Mattawan. While the leader of the Bulldogs, the two combined varsity and junior varsity teams held around 50 student athletes. Unlike Centreville, Mattawan does have quite a few more fall sport options and Schultz acknowledged that will be a factor.
During his time at Centreville, Schultz led the Bulldogs to a 29-12 record in four full seasons. Centreville won the Division 8 state championship in his first year at the helm, 2020, beating Ubly 22-0 at Ford Field in the COVID year.
Schultz said he hopes the people of Centreville understand the decision.
"I hope they do. I hope they understand. I know there will be some frustration and I'm sure some anger. I do feel bad about that," he said. "But my family will always be No. 1 for me. We believe this is a big step for us."
Mattawan has an enrollment with the MHSAA of 1,112 students for the 2024 fall football season. This puts them squarely in the Division 2 enrollment for football this fall. It's a big jump for Schultz, obviously, as Centreville's enrollment is 251 and Division 8.
The Wildcats have made the playoffs just once the past four seasons, the COVID year. Since, they have back-to-back 3-6 seasons and play in the SMAC, which features some big schools.
"I'm excited for the challenge. I'm excited for new challenges and playing the Portages, Kalamazoo schools," he said.
Schultz has a K6 teaching license, a K12 special education teaching license and a K12 administrative license as well. While he does not have a specific job inside the school system just yet, Schultz said that should not be a problem when the school year starts in the fall.
While excited for the new opportunity, Schultz said repeatedly that it was not an easy decision.
"I love Centreville and this was a hard decision. I have much love for the people of Centreville," he said. "I'm not leaving angry, I hope they don't see it that way. I love this school and the people in it. I will always support them as best I can and I hope they understand that."
Contact Sports Editor Brandon Watson at watson@gannett.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as twitter, @BwatsonSJ.
This article originally appeared on Sturgis Journal: Jerry Schultz leaving Centreville for Mattawan football post
