Assistant coach elevated, pending board OK
Marysville High School officials did not have to look far for a new boys soccer head coach.
Pending approval by the district’s board of education, Brent Harmanis will take over the position after Terry Smith’s recent resignation.
Harmanis is no stranger to the Monarch boys team as he served as an assistant coach under Smith.
“Brent has been with our program since 2013,” said MHS athletic director Joey Day. “He has invested a lot of time and has developed relationships within the team.”
Harmanis was one of three applicants for the position after Smith’s recent resignation.
As high school teams are returning to summer workouts, the window in which to hire a new coach was not wide open.
“The timing of Terry’s resignation (due to employment restrictions) wasn’t ideal,” said Day. “However, you sometimes have to face that.”
Harmanis was a member of the 2010 Hilliard Davidson team – coached by Smith – that won a Division I state title.
He joined the Monarch coaching staff during Smith’s first season at the helm.
“I’ve been here for seven years as an assistant coach and I’ve fallen in love with the Marysville community,” said Harmanis. “There is a lot of community support and I’m excited to be a part of it.”
The new coach said there are what he calls the “three pillars” of his coaching philosophy.
“They are in this order, classroom, community and work on the field,” said Harmanis.
“Academics will always be the top priority for my team,” he said. “We also want to be active within the community and be organized and disciplined on the playing field.
“The results on the field can be different from year-to-year,” said Harmanis, who has also coached club-level soccer for several years. “However, we want to build a strong foundation of teamwork.”
Day said the fact Harmanis puts academics first is very appealing to the district.
“He also has a good vision of where he wants to take the program,” said Day.