After three seasons at the helm of the Estevan Comprehensive School's football program, Marco Ricci is stepping down as head coach of the Elecs.
Ricci is moving to White City to manage a new Boston Pizza franchise starting up there. He will continue to run the location in Estevan, but the new store requires more of his attention.
Offensive backs coach Mark Schott will take over as head coach.
Ricci, a former defensive back and assistant coach with the Regina Rams, said he's disappointed to be leaving his hands-on role with football in Estevan, but is happy to be moving closer to his roots in Regina.
"There are so many people involved in the football program that don't get enough credit. The things the football program has done in Estevan have been (awe-inspiring) for people looking in from the outside who can't believe what we've accomplished in such a short time," Ricci said.
"It is the group of volunteers from Day 1 that have made that thing happen, so that's not going to change."
He said he will still be involved at arm's-length and is hoping to attend every Elecs game this fall.
"I'm not leaving. I will be around. No one can turn that part of me off."
Ricci, who was a key figure in the creation of Penta Completions Estevan Minor Football in 2008, became the first head coach of the newly formed Elecs the next year and helped lead the team to moderate playoff success in a short time.
The team reached the semifinals in the Moose Jaw High School Football League each of the last two years, including a 2-4 regular season record last season.
He said he is proud of what the minor football program has been able to accomplish and leaves the Energy City with plenty of memories.
"I think it's amazing. To have (rapid) development of a sport like this just shows how badly Estevan wanted it," Ricci said, adding that players are coming from all over the southeast corner. "You couldn't be more proud of a city, of a region, of what good people can do to make something work.
"From the very first kid that we suited up in equipment to the very first practices, just to see the excitement and the rawness of not (being) exactly sure what to do our first carry, our first touchdown. It's been such a time of firsts that it's pretty amazing."
Schott enters his second season on the Elecs' staff. Ricci said part of the reasoning for selecting him as the next head coach is that he is a teacher at ECS.
"He brings the values and knowledge of what the school's expectations of student-athletes are. He did an absolutely outstanding job for us as an assistant coach.
"He's very knowledgeable, a really good guy."
Ricci said he met with ECS principal Mike Little and vice-principal Walter Wood as part of the process in determining the next coach.
"That was (always) going to be the overall plan, for a teacher to be involved in the program (as the head coach)."
Schott said this will be his third year of coaching football, including a year in Edmonton. He has also coached high school basketball for 10 years.
He said being with the Elecs last year helped to sharpen his football mind and prepare him to take the reins of the program.
"I think it was just a really good refresher, because I'd been out of coaching football for a number of years. It was really good to get back into it," Schott said.
"There's a lot of experience on the coaching staff, so a lot of the knowledge that they have is really good to pick their brains and talk to them and see what their opinions are on things."
Schott has yet to meet with the rest of the coaching staff to discuss systems for next season, but he said he would have no problem with running the same playbook as last year.
"I would like to consider myself a players' coach. I'm pretty easygoing, but at the same time, demanding a lot out of our players in terms of dedication and effort and things like that."
Schott said he's optimistic about the Elecs' returning core, with key players coming back on both sides of the ball, including at quarterback, offensive line and linebacker.
He said Ricci has been instrumental to both the Elecs and minor football, but he is confident that the team can build on his work.
"He's been huge for football in Estevan and he pretty much got the program up and running. Football in Estevan wouldn't exist unless he came down here and put it together," Schott said. "I think we've got a good foundation that he's helped put in place and I think we've got pieces in place to move forward."
Aside from Ricci, Elecs assistant coach Mike Horton is also leaving the city.
