HS FOOTBALL: New Devils coach says community buy-in, support, key in rebuild
KAYLEE LINDENMUTH / SHENANDOAH SENTINEL FILE - Dave Bench coaches a Shenandoah Little League game.
SHENANDOAH – Shenandoah Valley’s new head football coach told the Sentinel Tuesday afternoon he was excited and honored to take on the role.
Dave Bench was unanimously approved as the new varsity coach at a special school board meeting Monday night.
Bench was a volunteer coach for the Blue Devils for the past two years and, for the better part of the past decade, has helped coach Jr. Devils football.
He said that support from parents and the community will be key to rebuilding the storied program.
“It’s not my show, it’s our show,” Bench said, saying that he wants to take a community approach.
He also said that helping guide the players to be great members of society is also a critical goal.
Regarding the team, he said “a lot of young kids are coming up,” and that the rebuild will take time with a young team.
“There’s a lot of potential,” Bench said.
Bench inherits a program in a historic slide. The Devils’ last winning season was 2012, which ended in a loss in the District XI playoffs to Williams Valley. The past 10 years included the first winless season since the 1910s and Bench is the fifth head coach for the team since 2013.
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