After five years as the Ayala High School head football coach, Tom Inglima was forced to transfer to Chino High in order to keep a teaching job, losing his position as football coach in the process. Budget cuts were cited as the reason for the transfer of Inglima, who was the least tenured of the physical education teachers at Ayala.
“It has long been the policy of Ruben S. Ayala to have the varsity football coach as an assigned teacher,” said Julie Gobin, the Chino Valley Unified School District director of communications. “Given Mr. Inglima’s transfer to Chino High, a new varsity football coach will be named within the next two weeks.”
Inglima turned the Ayala football program around, literally going from winless to league champs in his first three years. After a 0-10 season in his first year, Inglima led the Bulldogs to a 4-1 mark in the Sierra League in 2007 while earning Inland Valley Coach of the Year from the Daily Bulletin. In 2008, Ayala went 9-3 and claimed a share of the league title.
The San Gabriel Valley Tribune’s Fred Robledo spoke with Inglima who was nothing but positive despite his forced departure. Randy Reams, a longtime assistant football coach at Ayala, will serve as the interim coach until the new coach is named.
