Nowak steps down at Howell North
One of the four pillars of Francis Howell North athletics retired as the school’s boys soccer coach on Monday.
Vince Nowak, who along with fellow Howell North coaches Bob Dunahue (baseball), Bill Moyer (boys basketball) and Harold Ritchie (wrestling), are the only head coaches those teams have had since the school opened in 1987.
Nowak hasn’t taught at Howell North for two years and said his decision wasn’t a great surprise to his close friends and family because he’d kicked around the idea since the soccer season ended last fall.
“It’s time. I’ve been doing it for 24 years and I’ve got a staff of extraordinary coaches and it’s their time,” said Nowak who leaves with a sparkling record of 405-185-62. “Les Hager, Mark Olwig, Zach Fettig and varsity assistant Larry Scheller are all great coaches. We’ve always been fortunate to have outstanding soccer people and with me out of the classroom it was time.”
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In Nowak’s 25 seasons, the Knights reached the state final twice (1994, 2000) and won 15 district championships. Several former Knights have their names etched in the MSHSAA Records & Yearbook for individual and career achievements. Dozens of former players have gotten college scholarships.
Mike Janes has been the athletic director at Howell North for five years. Janes said that Nowak gave him his first break as a young coach just entering the school district.
“I thanked him for giving me that opportunity,” Janes said. “We have a very good relationship so this wasn’t a shocker. It’s a disappointment that we’re losing someone like coach Nowak. He’s done a great job of promoting that program and his staff is ready to take over. I’m very confident we’ll have someone here on staff ready to take over.”
Nowak’s departure comes at the same time St. Charles West coaching icon Terry Hollander and Francis Howell Central athletic director Terry Kasper are leaving their positions. That’s almost a 100 years of combined education and coaching experience.
Catch back up with the Journal later next week to find full-length feature stories about coaches Nowak and Hollander.
