Avery Goes From Classroom To Office

After a personal debate that lasted for many days, in the end, Sandwich head football and baseball coach Derek Avery knew what he had to do.

With a heavy heart, Avery recently announced to players, coaches, and administrators that he would be resigning after a combined 21 years as head man on the Indians gridiron and diamond.

The veteran leader and 1991 Sandwich graduate will now take on an even bigger role off the playing fields.

In late May, Avery was offered the rather lofty position as Assistant Superintendent of the DeKalb County Regional Office of Education located in DeKalb, IL.

Throughout the tough decision making process, ultimately Avery realized what was best for he, his wife, and two children and that was to step away from his coaching passion and into the new professional life of a key school administrator in the county.

He leaves behind a great coaching legacy that saw 14 solid years as Sandwich baseball boss and seven strong seasons as the Indians head football guru.

“This was definitely a tough decision for me and it wasn’t easy to step away from coaching. But it really was a career change basically,” Avery said. “I wasn’t looking to coach somewhere else. I was very happy with teaching and coaching in Sandwich. At the same time, this was a great career opportunity that may not have presented itself to me again. It was a chance to utilize the degree I earned a few years ago and head in a different direction, one that will definitely benefit my family.”

After graduating from Aurora University in 1996 with a teaching degree, Avery followed it up in 2005 gaining a Masters Degree in Educational Leadership from the College of St. Francis in Joliet.

He’ll now put that sheepskin to use moving forward as he leaves behind a treasure trove of coaching memories.

Avery’s finest hour appropriately came during his last campaign leading Sandwich to a 2010 Class 4A football final four appearance and a sparkling 11-2 record which also set an all-time school mark for wins in a season.

“I’ve been reflecting on a lot of memories most recently because this new situation came on so fast. But when I think back to all my years of coaching, I’ll just remember all the relationships I’ve built with my players and my assistant coaches,” Avery said. “I always thought my kids and I got along well. I respected them and they respected me. We just plain and simple went to battle together whether it was on a Friday night for football or on a Tuesday afternoon for baseball. But this year in football was the highlight for me in coaching. What we did was so special and I’m proud that I’m leaving the program in good shape with a healthy winning tradition during the past three seasons.”

Avery now hands the football coaching reigns over to long-time offensive line coach Dusty Behringer whom has served on the Sandwich football staff for the past 12 seasons.


-Bill Lidinsky