Grape Creek Athletic Director and Head Coach Vacancy Filled

GRAPE CREEK, TX-- Grape Creek didn't have to go far to find their new Athletic Director and Head Football Coach. In fact, the man they selected to fill the vacancy was already on their payroll.

Grape Creek Superintendent Angie Smetana said the Eagle's Defensive Coordinator Tanner Thiel was promoted to Head Coach and Athletic Director on Jan. 22.

"It means everything," Thiel said of Grape Creek's faith in him. "The support has been amazing since I got here."

Thiel is entering his second season at Grape Creek. The University of Texas at San Antonio alum was previously the Defensive Coordinator at White Oak High School in east Texas. Thiel spent three seasons with the Roughnecks before moving out west.

Thiel's promotion comes less than a week after former Athletic Director and Head Coach Justin Mueller resigned from Grape Creek.

With Thiel's promotion still fresh, there hasn't been any decision who will handle Grape Creek's offense.

"I've thought about it," said Thiel. "It may be a situation where I look for an Offensive Coordinator or I've coached offense before. I've got a really good defensive staff. I've also got Lynn Cauley on staff who was the Head Coach at Miles."

Grape Creek's new Athletic Director saw stints as an assistant at Justin Northwest High School, a 6A school in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, and Grand Saline High, another east Texas school.

"I've been a part of some really great programs and learned from some great mentors," Thiel emphasized. "I take and borrow bits and pieces from each program."

Thiel also helped construct UTSA's new football program as a Graduate Assistant.

"It was awesome. It was a great experience," Thiel said. "I was there for the first recruiting class. They had our coaching offices in portable buildings. It was just practices and scrimmages. We didn't have practice facilities on campus yet. We had to use one of the San Antonio ISD stadiums for practices."

The Eagles went 1-10 in 2017, but Thiel is optimistic for 2018.

"There's going to be a lot of improvement," Thiel said. "With there being a complete turnover of coaches it's tough getting kids to buy in. There wasn't one holdover from the previous staff. We're trying to prove to the kids that won't happen again. The kids are starting to trust us and buy in. We were a very young team last year."

Grape Creek was in District 2-3A Division 1 with Wall in 2017. In 2018, Grape Creek will move down to 3A-D2 and more than likely be placed in Sonora's district come February 1.

"We want to play programs like that," Thiel said with enthusiasm. "They're proven. We know we're not Sonora or Wall. We're going to be Grape Creek, but we can take bits and pieces of  those expectations and make our own."