Hanna named new head coach at Montoursville – PA Football News
Tagged under: Coaches Corner, District 4, News
Ed Weber | March 18, 2023
Earlier this winter, Joe Hanna was selected as Montoursville’s next head coach. However, he was thrown into the fire last season when Mike Boughton was diagnosed with cancer just before the start of the season.
Hanna would assume the role of interim head coach and, despite a whirlwind of emotions, would lead the Warriors to a 4-7 season and a place in the District IV Class 3A playoffs.
“Our coaching staff and our players switched seamlessly to me as interim head coach last season,” said Hanna. “We had a great group of seniors this year who led by example. Our players took it week after week and the team did a great job just focusing on the game that was supposed to be played that week. I’m very proud of how the team has handled all of the adversities they’ve faced this year: from all the troubles Coach Boughton has had to go through, to mid-season injuries to key players, to the toughest schedule in the second half of the season season I can remember in my twenty years coaching football at Montoursville.”
While this may be Hanna’s first stint as head coach, he’s no stranger to the game. A 1997 graduate of Lock Haven, where he played both soccer and basketball, Hanna played in college for Lycoming under Frank Girardi and was named team captain in 2000. Hanna started at Montoursville in 2002 and trained under both Jim Bergen and JC Keefer.
Coaching has long been a passion of Hanna. Hanna credits his father for teaching him that, and he was reminded of that by the Montoursville community last season.
“It has been amazing to see all the support from the Montoursville community during the 2022 season. The community and football team raised thousands of dollars to help Coach Boughton and his family in need. To see the time and effort people put into helping Coach Boughton and our football program was uplifting during this turbulent time. On a personal level, our coaching staff’s commitment to coming together this season has reminded me why I’m coaching at Montoursville and made me decide to make the head coaching job permanent. I am very grateful for all the help I have received from all the coaches who have mentored me during my time at Montoursville and during my playing days. I’ve had no greater influence than my father, who coached at Lock Haven High School and Central Mountain for over 40 years. To say I have been blessed to be around great men in the football coaching world would be an understatement and I think they all helped me prepare for the past season and all of its trials and tribulations.”
Now Hanna’s job is to get his team ready for the year, keep his players active with their off-season workouts, and learn the ins and outs of being a head coach.
“Long term, I want to continue the tradition of Montoursville football that was established by my predecessors with success both on the field and in the classroom,” concluded Hanna. “For me, football has always been more about coaching players and playing games, it’s about shaping great young men who are ready to go out into this world and thrive in life. I hope so in my new role as head coach.”
Follow PA Football News on Twitter @PaFootballNews
