Prep notebook: North Central hires Tom Griggs to turn around football program

Tom Griggs is well aware of the challenge he faces.

He’s more than eager to take a stab at turning around the floundering North Central football program. Griggs has been named to replace Brian Gardner, who was fired earlier this year.

“I’m not real focused on the past,” said Griggs, 32, head coach the past three years at Riverside. “That’s what I’ll tell the community. I’m ready to get going. The hard work we put in now and the future will be what tells the story.”

NC is Griggs’ third head coaching job. He was at Rochester near Olympia for a year before taking the job at Riverside.

The Indians haven’t had a winning season since 2000. Griggs had just one winning season at Riverside, but he remains optimistic.

“I think it’s a great fit for who I am and what I bring to the table,” Griggs said. “I love the makeup of the school. With that dynamic we can breed some success in the future.”

Griggs will teach history at NC.

“We wanted to find somebody with a positive open mindset who had great character and a new belief system,” NC athletic director Mike Ranieri said. “We loved his ability to persevere where he previously coached. He’s been successful getting a lot of kids out for football. He’s kind of a Pied Piper. You see kids following him around. We’re looking for him to build relationships with the kids. We need somebody to get down into the youth league and develop relationships with parents.”

His teams are run-based on offense and run out of a spread system similar to Auburn, he said. He uses a 3-4 defensive scheme and likes to get into the faces of wide receivers.

Colville hires coach

Bradley Mutton, by way of Gaithersburg, Maryland, has been named the head boys basketball coach for the Colville Indians.

“He is a highly qualified (coach) who will bring a strong character education background to our boys,” Colville athletic director Kelly Carr said.

This will be Mutton’s first head coaching position.

• Lakeside (Nine Mile Falls) boys basketball coach John Edwards resigned after four seasons, citing a need to spend more time with his family, Lakeside athletic director Jeff Pietz said.