Chuck Moehle, who comes over from Notre Dame in Spring Hill, graduated from Leto and Saint Leo.
By GREG AUMAN
Published June 19, 2003
LAND O'LAKES - Chuck Moehle, a former baseball coach at Springstead, was named athletic director at Land O'Lakes on Wednesday, taking over for Charlie McBride, who retired this spring after 30 years in the Gators athletic program.
"I'm extremely excited," said Moehle, 46, who has spent the past three years as an assistant principal and coach at Notre Dame Interparochial School in Spring Hill.
"This seemed like such an opportunity, and I think it's going to be a great challenge. I know Land O'Lakes has been very successful in a lot of sports programs. I don't know many people there, but from everyone I've met I've been impressed with the success and the stability there."
First-year principal Ray Bonti chose Moehle from a field of "quality applicants," including four internal candidates and several from offcampus. He said Moehle's experience and character made him stand out from the group.
"There were many factors, but certainly the character of the person," Bonti said. "He comes to us with 13 years of varsity baseball coaching, and he's been an assistant principal at a Catholic school, so he's the type of guy who can bring all the different groups of athletes together and be successful at it."
Moehle has lived and worked in Spring Hill since 1978 but is no stranger to Pasco County athletics. His family moved to the Tampa Bay area when he was 9, and he graduated from Leto High and earned a degree in social studies education from Saint Leo in 1978.
His wife, Valerie, works in the media center at Hudson High, where he has helped out as a stadium announcer at football games, as he did at Springstead. One of the first people he called after getting the job was Ridgewood coach Larry Beets, a longtime rival and friend.
"Chuck's a hard worker, and he's going to fit right into the mold as athletic director," Beets said. "When he was coach at Springstead, he was going someplace every weekend, trying to get his kids opportunities to play college baseball. He's a solid person, a very positive person."
Athletic directors in Pasco County earned a supplement of $4,157 during the 2002-03 school year. Moehle will work as a dropout prevention counselor at Land O'Lakes, and because the school's coaching staff is complete he will not coach any specific sports. He said that given his new responsibilities, that's probably a good thing.
"I'd like to coach, but first I have to see what the time demands with this are like," said Moehle, who reports for an informal introduction to Land O'Lakes this afternoon. "There will be a big learning curve for me this year, so I have to see how everything goes."
Moehle's 13-year coaching tenure at Springstead ended suddenly in 1995 when he was forced to resign during the season after he was accused of grabbing a player by the throat on the team bus during a ride home after a game. A police report was filed but the player's family declined to press criminal charges, and Moehle said the incident is something he hopes to put behind him.
"We all make mistakes and you learn from them," he said. "You grow from them, and I know I have. You put that behind you and try to move forward."
Moehle said the incident was not specifically brought up during his two interviews with Land O'Lakes. Bonti could not be reached again Wednesday night to address the matter.
