Yough grad Jim Schaffer named athletic director at alma mater

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Friday, October 13, 2023 | 10:03 AM

Longtime volunteer coach and Yough diehard Jim Schaffer is primed to take over as athletic director on Cougar Mountain.

Schaffer was hired this week to replace Bill Flow, who resigned in August after just more than a year on the job.

An assistant baseball coach in the district for 15 years and a football assistant for two, Schaffer is rearing to get started.

“They asked me (Tuesday), when can you start?” Schaffer said. “I said, how about tomorrow?

“I love Yough School District. I bleed green and orange. And, nowadays, maybe even a little silver.”

Schaffer, 52, currently coaches wide receivers and defensive backs for the Cougars. But the 1991 Yough graduate, who played three sports in high school, will oversee all sports now and scale back his concrete business.

The North Huntingdon resident owns JP Concrete. He said with his new full-time job, he likely will sub-contract many projects and be less hands on.

“I want to hit the ground running with this (new position),” he said. “I want to bring stability to the position. These juniors have had three ADs in three years. I want us to win everything and help to develop young people.”

Schaffer said he and football coach Ben Hoffer have been trying to recruit players from the lower grade levels to play sports.

“We want to get kids interested,” Schaffer said. “We want to see them active in something. If you play the piccolo, we’ll find a place for you.”

Hoffer also applied for the AD position but was glad to see Schaffer get it.

“He’s a great friend and an even better person,” Hoffer said.

Said Schaffer: “We were pulling for each other. I’d have been just as happy as he is for me if he got the job.”

A bench coach for the Yough American Legion team, Schaffer is looking to learn on the fly, with the help of Yough principal Brian Sutherland, who has handled athletic duties in the interim.

“There is a lot to this job,” Schaffer said. “A lot of behind-the-scenes things people don’t see. I have a great support system here, and I am looking forward to seeing what we can do. It’s all for the kids. It’s not about me.”

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

Tags: Yough