Quinn hopes to find permanent home as Ridgeview football coach
Jun. 12—Casey Quinn has heard some of the whispers.
Quinn, who was hired as the head coach of the Ridgeview High School football team on Friday, has found a good deal of success in more than a decade as a head coach. This includes winning a Tri River Athletic Conference championship at Fresno-Central in 2011 and a South Sequoia League title at Chavez in 2014.
But his career has also seen its share of change. Quinn, who spent 2020 as a wide receiver's coach at Bakersfield College, has held five head coaching positions at the high school level, also making stops at Fresno-Roosevelt, Clovis North and McFarland.
The longest run of his tenure was a four-year stint at Central from 2008-11.
So while he says he's ready to embrace his new community, Quinn also understands the skepticism some people have, and says he hopes to use the coming years to put any concerns they may have to rest.
"I know there's a perception out there, I'm not going to deny it," said Quinn, whose last head coaching stop came at McFarland from 2017-19. "But I had a chance to sit down with the administration ... and I saw the vision they have for their school and how football and athletics plays a big role in the development of a student-athlete and I thought it was a tremendous opportunity to be part of that community."
To Ridgeview Athletic Director Shane Koerner, Quinn's experiences at both the prep and college level were a positive thing, and he says his success at multiple schools made him an ideal candidate to replace Rich Cornford, who resigned shortly after the close of the 2021 spring season.
"He's had a proven record at several different schools throughout the Central Valley," Koerner said. "He's also coached at BC so I believe he knows what it takes for kids to not only succeed on the field but also succeed in the classroom. He knows what it really takes to get kids to the next level. It was, we feel, a good opportunity for Ridgeview."
Quinn is scheduled to meet with his players and coaches for the first time Monday and knows he'll have a busy few months ahead, as he tries to instill a new program while simultaneously getting his team ready for a regular season that is set to start in just over two months.
Despite the short window, he says he's confident his team will be completely bought in and ready to go by week one, while equally confident that 2021 will lay the groundwork for years of success.
"I'm a Bakersfield guy now, and I just see myself (at Ridgeview) for a long, long time," he said. "Until I retire."
