Ayala football coach Inglima removed, transferred to Chino
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.
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About Clay
Clay Fowler has been covering high school sports for six years in California and Texas. He was born in Dallas, attended the University of Texas and worked in Central Texas before joining the Daily Bulletin staff in 2006.
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The Ayala Administration made a huge mistake with the removal of Coach Inglima as Head Football Coach. Considering what he did for that school through the football program has been hugely positive. Not to mention the poor timing. It seems par for the course for a school district that is in disarray where injustice seems to be the order of the day. The only condolance is in that Randy Reams is at the helm, he is a very competent coach and a good man. Im sure Fowler is happy and I'm surprised that the title of the article didn't say Chino Hills Huskies Cause Inglima to be removed. GO BULLDOGS!
Coach Inglima was the best asset to the Chino Hills Football Program. We received a great number of outstanding athletes that transferred from Ayala due to Tom's antics, screaming and demoralizing behavior.
We are all sad to see him go!
CHHS Boosters
lol, CHHS Boosters thats funny coming from a school that has the some of the most classless fans Ive ever been around, looks like the boosters are no better. How do you attack the character of a man you dont know, in a public forum no less. Par for the course I suppose. Stay classy Huskies!
There is a lot more to this story and why he was forced out....Good Ridance Inglima
As a recent graduate from Ayala and a football player who played for Inglima I agree with everything that was said by the CHHS Boosters. I look forward to supporting the Ayala football program once again as they will be under new leadership. Go Bulldogs!!
Annonymous,
What he has done for the football program is give them a 26-27 record, out of the playoffs the last 2 years a 0-5 last place finish in the Sierra League last year.....Doesn't sound that hot to me. The guy is an ego maniac. He wants all the attention on him and his "Bulldog way". He thinks he is Joe Paterno Jr. on Friday nights with his coaching attire while his assistants wear normal clothes. He expects his kids to follow his "code" yet he doesn't do it himself. I can name plenty of breaches of that code....just ask the former booster president. I wonder how many kids will transfer to Chino Hills or Chino now that he is gone....probably ZERO.....they might even get a few since this dude is gone.
Chino gains another good coach and the program continues to build on the success of last season. Chino Hills will not be the program it was. The glory days are over. Chino's freshman class is excellent and the transfers an ending.
Coach Inglima turned Ayala around. The problem is the Bulldogs don't belong in the sierra league anymore. A new league with Chino, Colony, Ayala, Diamond Ranch, and San Dimas or Bonita should be formed. This would be an exciting loeague very competitive. Inglima was at Chino prior to Ayala so he will fit right in. Football coaches scream so whats the problem!!
He is not going to coach at Chino. No way McCain will have him on his staff. Know that for a fact.
I never said the man was perfect, I simply said that he did more good for the Ayala Football program than harm. My point was that this is not an appropriate place to defame ones character. @ Really, how would you like it if your imperfections were in a public forum where your family and friends can read? He took over a program with no identity and helped restore its pride. Under Inglima Ayala had a respectable record with very little talent compared to that of other schools, if you take away his 1st season 0-10(a program in shambles, already decimated by transfers to CHHS) he would be 26-17 making him .60 over the last 4 years in a extremely tough Sierra Leauge that Ayala won twice in those 4 years. After being close to the program for a few years I believe anyone that knows Inglima knows his intentions and knows he cares for his players antics or no antics.
I am a former player of Ayala who had to play for Tom Inglima (I do not refer to him as coach since he never earned that title). A man who throws tantrums similar to a 4 year old after each loss is not a credible coach. Proof to that statement lies in the fact that he screamed and cussed out all of us players on the bus following a close lose to Glendora that kept us from the playoffs my senior season. High School players take losses difficult as it is and players deserve a coach who is there to pick them up during difficult times. Inglima is not a positive role model and I am happy to see him leave.
If that does not show someone that he doesn't deserve to be a high school football coach then look at his past where he was fired from several coaching positions in just a few seasons. One of those schools was Diamond Ranch where Inglima was the head coach for exactly one season and took them to the playoffs before being fired. The school fired Inglima for his "antics" which included racist and derogatory comments. These "antics" have always been apart of Inglima's "Bulldog Way" and I feel sorry for the players and parents at the next school he coaches for.
He made Ayala respectable. Too bad he couldn't make himself respectable. As far as character goes, he has none! I know of families he has destroyed including a close friend of mine's. Husbands in Chino hills and now Chino need to keep an eye on their wives if they are around this guy.
He will fit right in with McCain if he is what you say he is. the only difference McCain will teach him how to be discreet about his bad behavior and put the knife in people's backs not their fronts.