Pete Gonzalez has been through it before, so hammering his coaching
ability and decision making on the blog is old hat to him. When he got
the job at St. Paul, he endured the criticism, then went out and took
his program to the CIF division semifinals.

The next season, his second, he won a CIF championship.

That segment of the Montebello faithful experiencing so much
discomfort with his hiring at Montebello might do well to chill,
better yet, hold off with the snide remarks and innuendo until he’s
provided hard evidence to deserve it.

For instance, Oiler Dad posts that ” … the new coach is letting a
lot of females” join the program. It is safe to assume that in his mind,
that indicates the football program is headed in the wrong direction.
For the record, there are four girls participating, three of whom were
in the program last season at the lower levels.

Oiler Dad also takes a shot at Gonzalez’s “12 varsity coaches but no
lower level staff.” Bad info. A dozen varsity coaches does seem
excessive, but there’s nothing illegal, immoral or unethical about it.
As for the “lower level staff,” the varsity staff will coach the varsity
and junior varsity the first year. And Nishil Shah will head up the
freshman staff of five coaches, all of whom were part of the program
last season. That’s a pretty good start for incoming student/athletes.

Oiler Dad then invites (encourages?) everyone to investigate the
program. Not a bad idea. But do so with an open mind, and don’t be
surprised if you find it better than the naysayers would like you to
believe.

Oiler Alumni Assoc. (has this person been authorized to speak for the
group?) claims to have inside information that Gonzalez was not hired
for his ability but because he and his family have important friends.
Surprised? He grew up in Montebello, attended school in the city. He’s
bound to know some people. Most people would consider that a plus when
it comes to fundraising and getting done many of the “little things”
that set good programs apart.
Most important, have some faith in your school’s administration. Do
you really believe that it would hire someone they felt maybe wasn’t
qualified as a coach?

C’mon, be real, not foolishly blinded by what seems to be personal
agendas. This is not to say the Oilers are guaranteed success under the
new regime, but they deserve a chance to prove their program, one way or the other.