River Valley coach fired

Just four weeks before River Valley High is going to play its first true home football game, the program has been shaken by the firing of popular head coach John Scott.

There have been reports that Scott may have been involved in practices prior to when coaches are allowed, but he did not confirm any specifics.

“The district made the decision and I don’t want to speculate,” Scott said of the reason, but added, his firing was “due to errors in my coaching tenure.”

River Valley athletics director Tom Zaragoza said junior varsity coach Troy Alexander has been appointed as interim head coach but referred all other questions about the situation to the Yuba City Unified School District office.

“It’s going to be a difficult transition and we just want to focus on the positives ahead,” Zaragoza said.

Zaragoza said the head coaching position was posted on campus for anyone wishing to apply.

Calls to Craig Guensler, assistant superintendent of human resources, were not returned Monday afternoon.

This was going to be the year River Valley was going to make a statement in the Tri-County Conference.

After grooming freshmen and sophomores in a junior varsity program during the school’s first two years, the Falcons battled through a difficult inaugural varsity season in 2006.

Scott led the team to a 1-9 record, playing mostly juniors and a scattering of sophomores.

Even after a 55-0 loss in the Mayor’s Cup to rival Yuba City in the season finale, coaches, players and parents were anxious for the 2007 season to arrive - what some boosters referred to as the “first real season.”

Matt Schamanski will take over the junior varsity team. He was Alexander’s assistant.

Yuba City High also has a new head coach.

John Ithurburn, a Yuba City graduate and well known in the area for his success at East Nicolaus, took over that job in late-April. He also is the athletics director.

Ithurburn replaces the tanden coaching team of Brian Brown and Chris Yonge, who resigned in November.