By Tim Peterson
(El Monte) – Johnny Argo is out as the head football coach at Arroyo after one year. The school posted the need for a new head football coach under “Coaches Wanted” on the CIF Southern Section website Tuesday. Argo confirmed that he has resigned.
Argo took over for Chuck Leonardis, who stepped down after the 2022 season. The Knights went 6-5 overall in Argo’s only season and lost in the first round of the CIF Division 12 playoffs to Arrowhead Christian 30-29. Arroyo won the Mission Valley League championship going 5-0.
Update: Johnny Argo confirmed Wednesday that he has resigned as the head football coach at Arroyo due to personal reasons. He has many obligations at work and at home and he was not able to continue as head coach. Here is his statement.
“I stepped down at Arroyo. It was a tough decision but with things going on at home and at work it just wasn’t feasible to continue to be the head coach at Arroyo moving forward. I loved the opportunity, miss my guys, but I have to step away from the game right now.”
McKinnon and Singiser had the horses. Who would want to leave when you get the best of the MVL year in and year out? It’s not complex. They don’t have the athletes anymore and Arroyo athletics has big shoes to fill. Nobody with any sense would want to coach there. So many expectations, so few athletes. So what if you win the MVL every year in football. The MVL is garbage. As for the other sports, it’s the same. The athletes in the MVL are not what they used to be. If you do have a stud from El Monte, good luck. Someone else is gonna recruit him. Especially in baseball.
What is going on with Arroyo Athletics? They only had 2 Head Football coaches from 1980 thru 2019-DJ MacKinnon and Jim Singiser. Now this will be the THIRD coach since the 2021 season. They have a rough 23-24 school year athletically thru the Fall and Winter seasons-definitely NOT what we have come to expect from Arroyo. Football recovered from a bad start-thanks to previous staff returning to right the ship-to win the league title. Boys and Girls XC teams rolled to league titles, as well as Girls Tennis. Girls Volleyball missed the play-offs again, but Fall had a lot of success. Winter season was awful! Boys and Girls Soccer teams missed the playoffs-for Girls I believe for the first time EVER (started in 1994-95). Boys Wrestling lost league title for the first time in a long time, Boys and Girls Basketball both made playoffs, but were not a factor in the league title races. Girls Wrestling did win league title for Arroyo’s only Varsity league championship in Winter season. What will the Spring hold? Arroyo is always competitive in Baseball, Softball, Track and Boys Tennis, so maybe there is hope. They have an administrative staff that does not know much-or in some cases care much-about Athletics in general, and a new AD (Singiser stepped down in December of 2022) that is learning on the job. But the football thing is disturbing-that program has been the flagship program of the school, and league for decades! Most people figured that Argo would not return, but why wait until February to make it official? Their returning kids have done absolutely nothing since they lost in 1st round of playoffs in early November-this is the same exact thing that happened a year ago when Coach Leonardis stepped down-one would think they would learn from their previous mistakes and try to get out ahead of the game. Only time will tell if they can make a great hire this late in the school year.
Spat’s not going to Arroyo. They don’t want him.
Argo got fired midway through the season. It’s finally official.
I give it 50/50 that Singiser becomes head coach again and a 100% chance he is an assistant next year. He’ll find someone he knows and likes and basically run the show.
@sports man
Trust me the Spat talk isnt that unlikely. Admin isn’t 100% bought in.
As in salary in teaching. Not coaching pay.
They are going to lose Rosemead or Gab ?????
SEM only realistic opponent would have changed outcome
I’m not saying that mid season “adjustments “ didn’t improve the team or make a difference but have to adjust expectations to strength of schedule …,
Agree with Smitty76, if Singiser, MacMillan and Leonardis don’t show up to right the ship, arroyo probably goes 1-4 or 0-5 in MVL. The MVL title belongs to Singiser, MacMillan and Leonardis, not Argo. They saved the program yet again.
Agreed 100% with Smitty76, if Singiser, Macmillan, and Leonardis don’t show up to right the ship. It would’ve been a 1-4 or even 0-5 in MVL with Argo at the helm instead of 5-0. That MVL title belongs to Singiser, MacMillan and Leonardis. Not Argo
The Watcher ‘if money is right/? all determined by salary schedule, not like private schools
Surprised
February 14, 2024 – 8:39 am | recent maybe in last few decades, but by far best teams were Mckinnon and Klein in 80’s
The Watcher
February 15, 2024 – 11:05 am | Permalink
If the money was right I wouldn’t doubt a Jude Oliva would be there and do great.
Ibis Aguilar that would be a good one.
Spat leaving EM for Arroyo wouldnt be a big surprise. yes it would be because he not going anywhere
If the money was right I wouldn’t doubt a Jude Oliva would be there and do great.
Ibis Aguilar that would be a good one.
Spat leaving EM for Arroyo wouldnt be a big surprise.
But those wins are against dreadful MVL opponents , they play some decent higher level
teams nonleague
*1-4
5-1 with Coach Singiser, Coach Leonardis and Coach Macmillan.
Any number of people or groups can fire a football coach. Not the steadiest of jobs.
Wow, that was fast.
Arroyo is really something, not willing to communicate with even its most prominent alum, the ever-trusty Tim Peterson. I suspect Singiser is pulling the levers of action in this drama, because whether anyone will admit it or not, he is the Godfather of Knights football.