ODA football expects "seamless" transition between head coaches

When The Out-of-Door Academy head football coach Ken Sommers stepped down in late June and defensive coordinator Chris Kempton was promoted to replace him, it was a stunning announcement.

Turns out, it was stunning only to people outside the program.

Kempton said he and Sommers had discussions about the move since Kempton took the defensive coordinator job in 2016. The conversations never expressed a desire for Sommers to leave the job immediately, only when the time was right. With Sommers wanting to spend more time with his family, the right time became “now.”

Sommers is staying on staff as the offensive line and special teams coach.

The move wouldn’t be as shocking to outsiders if it had occurred 12 months ago. Back then, ODA was coming off back-to-back 3-7 seasons (Sommers’ first two at the school). Then, the 2017-2018 season happened.

ODA went 6-2 and recorded its first home playoff win, 42-6 against Santa Fe Catholic, in eight years. Things were headed in the right direction after much pent-up frustration. Will the changing of the guard nix the Thunder’s momentum?

Don’t count on it.

“This has been a mutual partnership,” Kempton said of the transition. “We’re making it as seamless for the kids as possible.”

“Seamless” doesn’t mean there won’t be changes. Kempton said the defense will continue to build on what it ran last season, but the offense will be tweaked. This will be the third offensive scheme change for the Thunder in the last 15 months, which first toyed with the triple option in its 2017 spring practices, then abandoning it and went with a more traditional spread attack in the fall.

Now, Kempton said, the team will focus on the run game, adding zone and power concepts as well as run-pass options, which have become increasingly popular at the college level in the last few seasons.

That’s because of what Kempton saw in the spring. He was impressed with stable of running backs, including junior Jarred Flahive who led the Thunder with 61 yards on eight carries in ODA’s 16-8 spring game win against Evangelical Christian on May 17. He also knows how important it is to tailor your scheme to your players, not vice versa. As far as the passing game goes, Kempton said he will use the success of the running game to throw vertically off play action.

“I’m not a huge offensive guy,” Kempton said. “But I know what drives me crazy when I have to defend against it, and that’s what we’re going to run.”

Kempton was previously the defensive coordinator at Bates College for 10 years, and spent six years coaching at Maine’s Winthrop High, where he won a state title in 1993. He knows both what it takes to construct a successful high school program and, from his stint at Bates, is familiar with the type of kid who comes from private schools like ODA, smart and hard-working.

With Kempton at the helm, the Thunder has a chance to surpass last season’s successes, even with the graduation of quarterback Gus Mahler. We will find out beginning on Aug. 24, ODA starts its regular season with a road game against Canterbury High.