THE FRONT ROW with MARK NELKE: Coeur d’Alene football coach Amos says he’s not leaving anytime soon

Mark Twain, the great writer, once said, “Rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated.” 

Shawn Amos, the great high school football coach, said this week, in essence, that rumors of his retirement have been greatly exaggerated. 

“I want to address the recent rumors directly. I am 100% committed to next season and plan on coaching at CHS for the foreseeable future,” Amos told The Press earlier this week. 

Amos is 197-103 in 29 seasons at Coeur d’Alene, and 208-108-1 in 31 seasons overall. He’s led the Vikings to three state titles and 20 state playoff appearances, including 16 in the last 17 seasons. 

BUT APPARENTLY there’s a rumor circulating that this past season was Amos’ last as head coach, and that he is planning to step down. 

“I am not sure how the rumor that I am retiring got started, as I have not told a single person that I plan to step away from coaching,” said Amos, who declined to comment on the source of the rumor. “I could venture a guess on how and why the rumor got started, but what matters is the rumors are simply not accurate.” 

Amos, who will be 59 in February, reached the Rule of 90 in December 2024. He is an advanced fitness teacher and also is head track and field coach at Coeur d’Alene High. 

"Even if I were to retire at some point, our program is built on a strong, championship-level, collaborative culture where no single person determines our current or future success,” Amos said. “We have built this program for the long haul, with more than 30 coaches on staff, and everyone plays a meaningful role in the process.”

Coeur d’Alene has been one of the top football programs in Idaho for the past decade and a half, and the Vikings show no signs of slowing down.  

Amos noted that the CHS freshman and junior varsity teams both finished 8-1 this past season, and the Vikings have strong seventh and eighth grade classes coming up. 

"We have a clear plan in place to continue the tradition of Viking football well into the future,” Amos said. 

VINNY LUPINACCI, a former Coeur d’Alene High athlete and current Viking assistant coach, is CHS’ “head coach in training,” Amos said.  

“Every coach in our program is aware and in support of the plan. And when it is time, I will likely move to a position coach — unless coach Lupinacci fires me,” Amos said with a laugh. “He was a player for us and has coached with us for 16 years, so he understands our expectations and how we treat the players. As our special teams coordinator he works with all our athletes and is greatly respected. He is also a highly respected teacher at CHS, so the transition would be seamless.” 

When that day of transition comes is basically up to Amos for now. 

“We have always had a long-term vision for our program,” Amos said. “We have a lot of younger coaches learning under our veteran coaches just waiting for their opportunity, so there will not be a dropoff in the level of coaching or how we run our program.” 

Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 208-664-8176, Ext. 1205, or via email at [email protected]. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @CdAPressSports.