By Tim Peterson
(La Puente) – Hector Spathias, who was dismissed as the head football coach at Los Altos earlier this year, has been named the head coach at Workman he confirmed Thursday.
“I just finished my first practice with the team. We got a lot of work to do,” Spathias said. “It all happened pretty quick. I talked to them last week and was named coach last Thursday. My thing was I wanted to make sure I could get my staff together. They were more excited than I was so we came aboard. It’s going to be a challenge but we are up for it.”
The staff includes Jerry Urias and Aaron Williams who both coached with Spathias at Los Altos and previously at Bassett. Urias has trained several local athletes over the years including most recently South El Monte running back Sal Tovar last season. Tovar’s father, Sal Tovar Sr., will also join Spathias’ staff at Workman.
Spathias spent just one year at Los Altos where he went 7-4 overall and lost in the first round of the playoffs before being replaced by Travis Brown.
Spathias takes over for Oscar Robles, who spent one year as head coach of the Lobos before taking the HC job at Nogales.
Spathias can compare this job to his first year at Bassett but there’s one big difference. “When I took over there it was in December. We had a lot of time to work with those players before the first game,” Spathias said. “But this is June. We don’t have much time at all. Some of these kids have played only one year of football or not at all. But again we are up for the challenge. We’re really pumped up and ready to work hard.”
Workman finished 4-7 last year, losing in the first round of the Division 13 playoffs 35-7 to Santa Clara.
In this case it did they went 7-4 and made the first round of the playoffs you can either relate it to coaching or just enough talent that they didnt make varsity because of the stacked senior class before them.
You have a good point they probably have worked their butts off somewhere else. Its not an easy pill to swallow for these young men when the new coach brings his nephews with him and they are starting. But its a healthy dose of real life for sure!
Anonymous; no comparison between JV and Varsity records; 8-2 JV don’t mean much when they move up
Anonymous; JV 8 and 2 means zero on Varsity the next year. Some big programs carry a lot of sophomores on varsity; some don’t. More relevant is JV coaches coach against JV coaches. Generally Varsity staffs are much much better than JV coaches
transfer players are normal in the best programs; ever since the open enrollment or similar to that ; transfers are normal and make good programs great. So those kids that worked asses off for Hector may sit bench; this new coach wants to win big; not just win league. I thnk the transfers that some mention will start and cause others to sit ; but those very good transfers have worked very hard also; just not at LA
yes..a returning 6’4 all cif QB and program that made playoffs for first time in like 20 years this past year..huge challenge lol
@WC, don’t waste your breath on these delusional LA people. Their intellect doesn’t match their arrogance….
From my experience a junior on the JV team is not that talented. A decent Junior should be on the varsity team and an outstanding sophomore should be on the varsity team. In a very good program there should be no juniors on the JV team. From what you’re telling me the LA staff took these marginal juniors from the JV team and turned them into a varsity team that won 7 games.
That is pretty impressive if you know high school sports. From what we played against LA had to use a fair amount of sophomores. They did a good job, I am just glad we don’t have to compete against those guys.
That was the team spat coached this years is all the transfers, spat inherited the team before the senior class left in in 2016
LA is delusional
Yea ok buddy, LA was so loaded with that super JV team they brought in 20 plus transfers…..
LA, Some people are so clueless it’s mind blowing! They just don’t get it and they never will. Delusion is clouding your judgement, until you understand you’re own limitations you will never grow and never understand.
they are very fortunate to get Spathias and staff
8-2 as a JV team, hahahahaha. These LA guys are hilarious!
Can’t belivev they didn’t win state with all that “talent” lol
The team he had went 8-2 as JV players so that was his varsity squad lets face it it was the most talent he has ever coach he wasnt LA material.
@Unbelievable, I feel really bad for those kids that are getting replaced after working so hard all off season. It’s truly a shame! Some very talented kids are gonna sit the bench, unfortunately those kids will pay for the sins of the toxic parents/admin.
LA has an uncountable amount of transfers. It is truly shocking how so many kids have transferred into LA but yet none of them have actually moved to HH. We have boys that have worked their butts off under Coach Spat and showed dedication to LA and now they won’t be starting. LA is really trying to win a Championship unfortunately its not with home grown talent.
@LA homer, keep telling yourself that buddy. Maybe if you say it enough it’ll come true. Lol.
When we watch film on Los Altos last year they only had one talented player #88 and he was only a sophomore. We knew we had that game. They didn’t have the horses to compete against us. With that roster we didn’t know how they won all those games. There was no talent left behind from the previous year and I think #88 was on the freshman team because he wasn’t on the varsity team.
Spats was just a filler coach that LA needed to have so they could find the coach they really wanted when it was all said and done he was a basic coach and was exposed against CO and DR what made him look good was the talent that was left after the previous talent graduated……
Brown had amazing talent when he was at Duarte but look at his record when he was the head coach. He went 2-8 and 1-9. How he got the Cantwell job and now Los Altos is insane.
@LA, you sure it’s only 12? I heard there were much more transfers than that. Looks like LA is loaded with talent, let’s see what Brown can do for you….
We just got like 12 transfers and all will be starter to put together with this junior class that is loaded. We got the talent to dethrone CO. We will be Hacienda league champs and everybody else will be competing for second.
I’m really rooting for this team!!!
Brown hasn’t accomplished anything as a coach to warrant removing a guy like Spathias. It don’t matter if Brown wanted the job or not.
los altos got a alumni great player; college athlete and very good coach; Hector is a great coach; also made the playoffs at bassett as a head baseball coach. How many coaches lead 2 diff sports to playoffs? not many. Bassett football has fallen terribly without spathias. good job at LA, just unlucky that brown wanted job
I give this Coach much Respect. Taking on a challenge knowing what he’s up against. I want to give a shout out to the Los Altos whom done Coach Spathias wrong. You can never win year in and year out, many changes, players graduate and transfer out. May Karma get the best of you for your actions against a classy Coach and his staff which was done wrong by cry baby spoiled parents. Go Workman and Coach Spathias & Staff Stay Classy and much success.
Good luck Coach Tovar & Coach Martinez. Wonderful job at South with our kids. May you have success at Workman!
Coach Spathias and staff way to take on the challenge of taking over a team in June not many coaches would do that. Great hire for workman. It’s going to take time but you were successful at Los Altos and Bassett when people had dealts. Workman your ball players are in good hands and will learn football.
Good luck to this coaching staff.
Good luck to coach Tovar and the rest of the staff this year!
I hear Hector Spathias is one classy guy
I hear Hector Spathias is one classy guy
Very happy Spathias decided to take this job, Los Altos did him wrong on so many levels. Workman got a great staff that’s in it for all the right reasons! Great hire!
got get em’ coach. Los Altos doesn’t deserve you.
I agree nwo now this guy is the real deal a man of character grit and hard work, hands down my favorite coach for such a bold move, what other local coaches could pull off something like what Spathias is attempting ? Please do not comment Mr. O as I am talking about home grown kids that coached not poached.
Great hire! Good luck Workman!!!
CIF champs on previous post not CIG
Coach Spathais and staff can turn programs around. Maybe not into CIG champs or league champs. But into teams that will play to win every week and actually compete. 2nd year at Bassett nobody thought they start league 5-0 they competed. Los Altos lost a lot of talent to graduation and they still ended up a respectable 7-4. I give Spathais and staff credit for taking Workman team on. I think now a days coaches looking for a established team with some talent before accepting job. In time Spathais and staff will have kids believing in themselves and will turn athletes into football players. Best of luck fellas. Olympians miss u GUYS
This is a real coach. Coaches what is presented to him.
While I completely understand the time constraints of this very late hire, I nonetheless wish to pass on my wishes to Mr. Spathias and staff for a decent first season at Workman, and for even better campaigns in the future. You guys are very good at what you do, and I will enjoy watching it all unfold.