Impressive candidates for IHSAA job

Bill Young has big feet, and the person who will be hired to fill the Idaho High School Activities Association executive director’s shoes will find out exactly how big those feet are as early as next summer.

As told here first in September 2004, Young is retiring at the end of the current school year. His last official day will be June 30.

The IHSAA board of directors will announce Young’s replacement by mid-January. Lakeland School District superintendent Chuck Kinsey, who just finished eight consecutive years on the IHSAA board, is chairing a committee that will screen applications and recommend candidates for interviews. The application deadline is Nov. 17. The recommendations from Kinsey’s committee will go before the board at its late November meeting, and interviews will be arranged for early January.

Post Falls High principal John Billetz and Middleton athletic director Gerry Nutt told me this week they plan to apply. Both are current IHSAA board members – Billetz representing the state’s principals and Nutt representing the boys coaches statewide.

Billetz met with his teachers and support staff this week to tell them his intention to apply.

Both Billetz, 54, and Nutt, 52, have spent their entire careers in the Gem State. On that basis alone that should give both a leg up on any assistant directors from neighboring states who have either applied or expressed interest in the job.

Even Young went so far as to tell me last week that his replacement “has to understand Idaho.”

If there’s one thing I’ve found to be true in my 21 years in Idaho is the state is as divided politically as it is geographically. There are three distinct regions – northern, southern and eastern. To Young’s credit, though, he did a fine job uniting the state on many fronts.

“Hopefully, we have another Bill Young applying,” Kinsey said. “I have nothing but great respect for him. He’s a professional, classy gentleman. I’m confident we’ll have good applicants. I look forward to seeing the quality of applicants.”

My gut feeling is a current Idaho administrator will be hired – and it quite well could be Billetz or Nutt.

I’ve dealt with both administrators on various occasions in recent years. Both have the ability to see the bigger picture in the middle of a hotly debated issue – a skill Bill Young mastered.

If they are the lone applicants from Idaho, I suspect that Nutt would be the early leader in the clubhouse. He’s spent 31 years in District III – the Boise area where the IHSAA is headquartered.

Billetz landed in Idaho by way of West Virginia University back in 1974 as a graduate assistant football coach at Idaho State University. He wanted to be a college head coach.

A Pennsylvania native, Billetz earned his administrative credential at ISU. He took his first teaching and head coaching job at Gooding in 1976.

He was there for four years before moving on to Burley. He was a vice principal and head coach there for five years. He spent another six years as principal.

Billetz’s next stop was 6 miles down the road to Minico, where he had the itch to return to head coaching.

“I didn’t have it out of my blood yet,” said Billetz, who was the coach and athletic director for three years.

His last 11 years have been as principal at Post Falls. All three of his children graduated at Post Falls.

“My whole life has been involved in activities,” Billetz said. “We teach things in extracurricular activities that we can’t teach in the classroom.”

Billetz plans to stay at Post Falls if he doesn’t get the job.

“I would have no problem staying here until I retire,” Billetz said. “I owe a lot to this state. It’s been very good to me. I feel like I can give something back.”

Nutt is in his second year as A.D. at Middleton. He has been helping the school brace for a move from 3A to 4A next year.

He was at Kuna for 25 years – eight as head football coach and 11 as A.D. He got his start in teaching and coaching at Melba.

“I think it would be a great personal challenge,” Nutt said of being the executive director. “Following in Bill Young’s footsteps will not be an easy task.”

Both Billetz and Nutt agree that Young is leaving the IHSAA in better shape than how he found it.

“He’s established so many good things,” Nutt said. “He’s still working hard to make sure it’s in better shape when he leaves.”

Said Kinsey: “We still have a lot of time (before the applications deadline). We might see others surface from around the state.”

Which would only make an already appealing list that much more attractive.