Choate New Pf Football Coach Now School Has To Find Head Basketball Coach After Moore Resigns As Expected

Post Falls High School officials filled one major head coaching job Friday while another one officially came open.

Jeff Choate has been offered the head football coaching position, pending school board approval next week, Principal John Billetz confirmed.

A former standout at St. Maries, Choate takes over for Jerry Lee, who resigned after building the Trojans into a perennial Inland Empire League power.

In the other coaching move Friday, Scott Moore finally did what he said he would do at the beginning of the boys basketball season, as he stepped down as head coach.

Choate was one of two candidates interviewed Thursday, Billetz said. The other was assistant varsity coach Jeff Hinz.

Before taking an assistant coaching job at Twin Falls this year, Choate spent two years as head coach at Challis in eastern Idaho. In his second year he coached Challis into the state playoffs for the first time since 1976.

“He comes highly recommended,” Billetz said. Two former Twin Falls head football coaches, Bill Jones and Jon Jund, called Billetz on Choate’s behalf.

“That’d be like Jerry Lee or (Lewiston coach) Nick Menegas calling,” said Billetz, a former head football coach at Minico where he was familiar with Jones and Jund. “When they called we kind of knew that he was a pretty good kid. Then in the interview he really sold himself. He’s quite dynamic.”

Choate’s head coach at St. Maries, Curt Carr, was thrilled to hear one of his players is moving close to home.

“It’s nice to see a St. Maries kid get a premier job,” Carr said.

Most of Lee’s assistants, including Hinz, are expected to return.

Choate couldn’t be reached for comment Friday.

Moore, meanwhile, leaves on a high note. He led Post Falls (22-4) to a fourth-place finish at the State A-1 Tournament this season.

His five-year record was 73-46, the best of any Post Falls coach in more than a decade.

Parents tried to get Moore fired last year. But Moore wouldn’t budge. Administrators allowed Moore to return with the understanding he would resign after the season.

“I’m glad to put it behind me,” said Moore, who isn’t sure if he’ll seek another coaching/teaching job elsewhere. “I’m very proud of what I’ve done here. The program is in better shape than the way I found it, and I think I made a difference in the lives of many people.”

The coach Moore took over for, Wade Quesnell, is considered the leading candidate to replace Moore.

Quesnell coached one year at Post Falls then resigned in the summer to return to southern Idaho. A month later, Quesnell returned to Post Falls but wasn’t rehired as basketball coach.

Moore’s final team finished with the second-highest grade-point average among A-1 teams (3.51). Each of his five teams were honored for their academic achievements.

“I’ll get back into (coaching), I just don’t know where or when,” Moore said.

, DataTimes