Lewiston football coach Shawn Nilsson resigns
Shawn Nilsson had been thinking about stepping down as Lewiston’s head football coach during the season.
Nilsson, 52, made it official just after the first of the year. His teams were 26-21 in five seasons including 9-1 and 9-2 the last two years.
“I told them when I took the job I’d give it five years and then re-evaluate,” Nilsson said.
The job wore on Nilsson, and he especially felt fatigued after the 2016 season.
“I love to fly fish, love to hunt,” Nilsson said. “I’ve been coaching football 31 years, 28 at Lewiston. And when you go back to the years I played I’ve been in football 39 years. I haven’t taken a fall off. I’m ready to go fly fishing when I want to and hunt on the weekend.”
Former Lewiston head coach Nick Menegas came back to assist Nilsson, a longtime friend. Menegas and another longtime assistant, Dave Cornelia, the girls basketball coach, also resigned their assistant positions.
“We’ve coached together a long time,” Nilsson said. “I’m glad we did it together. It’s time to pass the reins.”
Nilsson leaves the program in better shape than he found it.
Coeur d’Alene football coach Shawn Amos has always said he wasn’t a lifetime coach.
But he plans to return next year, and it makes sense considering he’ll have highly recruited quarterback Colson Yankoff for one more year.
“I’m excited for the offseason,” Amos said.