Daugherty to Take Over for Rodgers as Park AD | News, Sports, Jobs

Photo by Cody Tomer
Wheeling Park football coach Chris Daugherty, left, will be taking over as the Wheeling Park athletic director when Dwaine Rodgers, right, retires at the end of the school year.

WHEELING — Wheeling Park athletic director Dwaine Rodgers still remembers a rambunctious fifth grader from his gym class when he was teaching at Woodsdale Elementary School roughly 40 years ago.

That youngster was none other than current Wheeling Park football coach Chris Daugherty.

It was announced at Monday’s Ohio County Schools Board of Education meeting that Daugherty will take over for Rodgers as the Wheeling Park athletic director after Rodgers announced his retirement earlier this month.

Rodgers will continue to be the athletic director until the end of the school year when Daugherty will officially take over the position.

Daugherty will also keep his title as the school’s football coach.

“To be an athlete and a coach – I always saw myself coaching at some level but I never envisioned myself in this seat,” Daugherty said. “The last several years of getting to work with Dwaine has built a desire to help when he leaves.

“He’s done such a great job and I just want to fill those shoes and continue pushing Wheeling Park athletics forward.

“I’ll continue as the football coach too. I think everyone is OK with that. If there comes a time where those two things are too difficult I’ll bow out and I’ll be AD but I’ll at-least give it a year or two.”

Rodgers has been working as Park’s AD for 15 years and it took a lot of prayer before he finally decided to hang it up.

“I have to admit it was a hard decision,” Rodgers said. “I’m 62, turning 63. Coach Doc and I have good conversations, not only about sports but spiritually too. I did pray. I thought having my wife retire would help too but I’m still going and she is at home. She probably wants to go somewhere either with me or without me. So one day I showed up at work and saw Mr. (Rick) Jones (Ohio County Schools assistant superintendent) and (Wheeling Park principal, Meredith) Ms. Dailer setting up for presentation and I don’t know what happened.

“I walked up to them and asked ‘Do you have a minute?’ I shared with them that this was going to be my last year. It kind of felt like a lot of pressure came off my shoulders but they were so gracious. Everything that happened to me in Ohio County Schools, I wouldn’t have changed it for anything.”

Knowing that Daugherty will be taking his place is also reassuring for Rodgers.

“I felt that with coach Doc being involved, it’s a great move and I know it will be in good hands,” Rodgers said. “I found myself getting emotional (Monday night) for a lot of different reasons. I’m very happy and proud of him. I had him in fifth grade at Woodsdale when I was teaching. I was putting on a volleyball lesson. One rule was after a score, you roll the ball under the net to the opposing team. But, some boy decided to throw it over the net and hit a little girl in the head. That’s how I met coach Doc and the rest is history.”

The two have grown closer since the fifth grade volleyball debacle and Daugherty has learned a lot from his mentor over the years, starting with how to return a volleyball.

“His work ethic is phenomenal,” Daugherty said of Rodgers. “It’s the best work ethic I’ve ever been around. He coached that way. I’ve had the opportunity to coach with him and it helped me be a better coach. Then he went on to the AD and he kicked me in the rear end when I needed it. As a coach and as a player, he’s always kind of been there for me. Now as working adults and peers, it’s just been a great opportunity to work with him and learn from him.”