Steve Allen reluctantly resigned as DeLand’s head football coach after five seasons late Thursday night.
Allen told the Orlando Sentinel via phone Friday that he was blindsided when informed that the school “wanted to change the culture” of the program.
“It really wasn’t my decision. They were going to fire me, so I just put it on my terms,” Allen said. “It wasn’t me deciding that I didn’t want to be the coach at DeLand anymore because I’d still be the head coach if it was up to what I wanted.”
DeLand finished 4-4 this fall and narrowly missed out on a fourth consecutive trip to the FHSAA region playoffs.
Zach Barrett stepped down at Orlando University following last week’s season finale. The Cougars finished 3-7 overall and 0-4 in district play. Barrett, who was in his first season as a head coach, did not respond to a text message and voicemail left by the Sentinel this week.
University is seeking candidates with “3-5 years” of high school head coaching experience for its opening, according to a listing on the FHSAA classified page.
Deltona Pine Ridge was forced into a midseason coaching change after Allen “B.J.” Johnson stepped down less than two years into his tenure. Former Stetson University assistant coach Stan Clayton took over on Oct. 13.
Allen sent a letter of resignation to DeLand principal Melissa Carr at around 11 p.m. Thursday after communicating with athletic director Lance Jenkins by phone and text message.
“He resigned and our principal accepted his resignation,” Jenkins said.
“They wanted to make a change and they don’t need a reason,” Allen said. “They’ve got somebody in mind that they want to be the coach, and it’s not going to be me.”
DeLand is accepting applications for the vacancy through Nov. 18. Jenkins, who declined to address Allen’s views on what transpired this week, said the school hopes to make a hire by the first week of December.
“He doesn’t know [if he was going to be fired] because we hadn’t met with him yet,” Jenkins said. “He hadn’t had a face-to-face meeting with our principal yet. That was scheduled for Wednesday and then rescheduled for Friday after school.”
Allen did not attend Wednesday’s meeting and was not at school Friday. He said he plans to continue teaching physical education at DeLand through the end of the school year but is unsure what’s next for him.
“Me and my coaches have invested in these kids’ lives, and we don’t have any regrets,” Allen said. “We’ve graduated every kid, been county champions twice, and put kids into college. It’s a shame.”
Allen went 25-20 in his five seasons with the Bulldogs after moving in from South Daytona Warner Christian. He owns a 99-59 career record in 15 seasons as a head coach.
“All I did was right by DeLand and the kids and our coaches, and you can’t take that away. That lasts forever,” Allen said. “I’m not regretful or shameful of anything that happened, and I’m not sure that all of the parties involved in this will be able to say that moving forward.”
This article originally appeared on OrlandoSentinel.com. Email J.C. Carnahan at jcarnahan@orlandosentinel.com.
