OTHELLO — The Othello School District Athletics announced Wednesday the hiring of Jerome Learman as the high schools new head football coach.  

According to a statement by OSD Athletics, coach Learman brings a rare combination of elite academic preparation, extensive coaching experience, and high-level sports science expertise to Othello Athletics. According to Learman, he does not take this new role lightly.

“I think Roger (Hoell) has been there 32 years... to me, definitely a legend. It's like taking over for Bo Schembechler, or Woody Hayes,” Learman said. “There's a great tradition of (winning) there, and hopefully I can build on what Roger built already. (Othello also) reminds me of home.”  

Learman said he grew up on a dairy farm in Michigan. When he visited Othello for the first time, it reminded him of home. When assessing the opportunity to take over the Huskies football program, the opportunity to build relationships with players stood out to him.  

“High school is where you have a bigger effect (and) better relations with the players. It's a little different than college, I just felt like there's a lot of good things there, and obviously there's some great people in the community there too, to work with and so on,” Learman said.  

According to OSD Athletics, he holds a Doctor of Philosophy and a Master of Science in Kinesiology from Michigan State University, as well as a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science.  

Most recently, Coach Learman served as the Director of Applied Performance Science for the University of Tennessee football program from 2022 to 2026. His background in sports performance, athlete development, and data-driven training will enhance the standard of preparation for Othello student athletes.  

His experience also includes sports science roles with the University of Louisville, the University of Utah, and Michigan State University. 

“I do believe there is a smarter way to train and prepare and so on. We'll do that to the best of our abilities, but it still comes down to hard work and stuff at the same time. So to me, you want to work hard, but you also want to work smart. Hopefully, if you can combine those two, then I think you can do some really good things,” Learman said.  

According to OSD Athletics, Learman brings an extensive history of leading successful high school football programs. He served as Head Football Coach at Lake Michigan Catholic High School and Dansville High School, and most recently led Osan Middle High School in South Korea as both Head Football Coach and Athletic Director.  

Across his career, he has also coached track and field, coordinated special teams, and contributed to strength and conditioning programs at multiple levels, the statement wrote. 

When Learman and the Huskies take to the gridiron for the first time this fall, their goal will be to put out a fundamentally sound team.  

“At the end of the day you can do all kinds of fancy stuff on offense, defense and special teams, but it's really the team that blocks the best, attacks the best and takes care of the football is the one that wins almost every single game,” he said.  

If they can execute that strategy, their team identity will be preceded by their body of work.

“Scheme wise, it doesn't matter what you run if you can't do those things. I hope that we're going for executing the fundamentals really well and when (teams) play us, they know that they're going to get hit, and we're going to block and tackle and take care of the football as well as anyone in the state of Washington,” he said.  

In addition to coaching, Coach Learman has an extensive background in education, having served as a physical education teacher and university professor at institutions including Michigan State University and Central Michigan University, according to OSD Athletics. 

As he takes on this new endeavor, Learman hopes to make the Othello community proud next season.  

“The school is important in the community, it's not just football, it's all the sports. You look at other sports, and they have a tradition of doing things at a very high level and obviously I hope to come in and hopefully make the community proud,” Learman said. 

    The Huskies defense lines up for the next play during last years state tournament game. New Head Coach Jerome Learman hopes to carry on a winning tradition at Othello next season.