Ty Harper, center, was named the next Chautauqua Lake/Westfield/Brocton head football coach at Wednesday’s Chautauqua Lake Board of Education meeting. He will be joined in Mayville be defensive coordinator Chris Payne, left. OBSERVER File Photo by Tim Frank

MAYVILLE — Ty Harper stepped down as head coach of the Clymer/Sherman/Panama football program in mid-January.

As it turns out, Harper won’t be away from the sideline long.

In fact, he’ll be back this coming season.

Harper was approved as the Chautauqua Lake/Westfield/Brocton head coach at the Chautauqua Lake Board of Education meeting Wednesday evening.

“In recent years, we’ve hired some exceptional teachers who are also remarkable coaches. Coach Harper is an excellent example of a teacher and coach who is dedicated to ensuring his students succeed both in the classroom and on the athletic field,” Chautauqua Lake superintendent Dr. Josh Liddell said Wednesday. “Time and time again, we’ve seen that outstanding coaches also make exceptional teachers, demonstrating a strong work ethic and competitiveness that drive their success in all aspects of school life.”

When he resigned as the Wolfpack’s head coach, Harper cited a desire to be closer to his family – his wife, Lauren, is Westfield’s director of instruction and special education, and his three sons are elementary students at Westfield.

“Chautauqua Lake door to door for me is eight minutes. It certainly frees up time, especially in the fall. Being able to attend (son Colt’s) practices more frequently is going to be a welcome change,” Harper said Wednesday. “Being able to make all of the twins’ flag games, which are typically on Saturdays, is going to be an important thing for me to be able to do.”

In addition to being more hands-on coaching his sons’ youth teams in the near-term, the move will allow him to be their varsity coach in the long term if they continue playing football.

“Typically in the past we played home games on Saturday afternoons and I think I made it to two of the twins’ flag days this past season,” Harper added. “I’m excited to be more present for the boys and their football endeavors.”

Harper’s reputation precedes him to Mayville. After coaching Clymer/Sherman to a 1-7 record in 2014, the Fredonia High School and St. John Fisher graduate led a decade of dominance with Clymer/Sherman/Panama that included a 78-23 record and three New York State Public High School Athletic Association Class D state championships — in 2018, 2019 and 2024.

The Wolfpack produced 18 New York State Sportswriters Association first-team all-state selections in the past eight seasons, including five Class D Players of the Year – Derek Ecklund in 2018, Cameron Barmore and Gerrit Hinsdale in 2019, and Tate Catanese and Bryce Hinsdale this past year.

This past season, Clymer/Sherman/Panama returned a ton of talent to its skill positions, but was forced due to graduation and injury into playing five new starters along the offensive line. By the end of the season, that group was as responsible for the team’s success as any other group.

“I’m so grateful that Josh and (athletic director) Bryan (Bongiovanni) have given me this opportunity,” Harper said.

Harper will not be unfamiliar with his staff in Mayville. In fact, he’ll be bringing Wolfpack defensive coordinator Chris Payne with him to serve in the same position with the Eagles.

“Chautauqua Lake is proud to welcome Coach Harper and Coach Payne to our athletic staff. We are very fortunate to have them, as both bring a proven track record of motivating and coaching athletes to reach their full potential while achieving a lot of team success. Of equal importance, both coaches possess great character and understand the value of shaping their players into good people,” Liddell said. “Coach Harper and Coach Payne are beloved by their players and the community and we cannot wait to see the positive culture they develop.”

“I care about Chris both as a colleague and a friend. We worked together the past 10 years. There is a lot of trust that’s been built up between the two of us. I feel fortunate that he was willing and able to make this jump with me,” Harper added. “I think he’s still got a lot of football left in him. I’m thrilled that we’ll be able to share the sideline together again.”

The addition of Harper continues a trend at Chautauqua Lake of adding teachers and coaches who experienced great success as student-athletes themselves, including boys basketball coach Devin Pope and girls basketball coach Sarah Burnett.

“Our district is fortunate to have seen an increase in the number of outstanding families, coaches, and teachers looking to join our school community,” Liddell said. “The overall culture is great right now and it’s an exciting time to be part of both our athletic and academic programs.”

The cupboard is certainly not bare with the Eagles. The recent coaching staff has led the program to its most success in a decade in the past couple of years.

This season, Chautauqua Lake/Westfield/Brocton finished 7-3 overall, including 5-2 in Class C South, and earned two home playoff games. After beating Alden 41-28, the Eagles lost to Class C runnerup Portville/Cuba-Rushford 32-17.

“They obviously had a really successful season last fall. They were a game away from playing for a sectional title. I think there are a lot of reasons to be optimistic,” Harper said. ” … I’ve said for a long time that I think, whether it’s Class C or Class D, Section VI plays the best small-school football in the state. I stand by that. I think that’s shown year in and year out through the teams that advance in the state playoffs.”

Junior wide receiver Nick Jacobson was named a second-team all-state selection, junior quarterback Brayden Gibbs was named a third-team all-state selection, and sophomore running back Thandon Bensink and junior kicker Carson Fairbank were named honorable-mention all-state selections.

“Class C is a really competitive league. Every team is well coached and I certainly don’t anticipate that it will be easy. … It’s going to be a gauntlet. I’m excited for the challenge,” Harper said. “We have a great core of kids who were scratching the surface last year. I would expect us to be very competitive this fall. Additionally, there’s a fantastic program (Clymer/Sherman/Panama) moving into the league from Class D that’s had a lot of success. I think that only adds to the strength of the league.”

At January’s board meeting, Harper was approved as a social studies teacher beginning March 3. He’ll now take over the football program with next season set to begin Saturday, Aug. 23.

“Overwhelmingly everyone has been extremely welcoming, which has definitely made the transition a lot easier. It seems to be a great faculty and staff,” he said. “A lot of the returning players have shown excitement and been extremely friendly. … I’m really excited about getting to work with them.”