Prep football: Gilliland tree sprouts, with 3 ex-West assistants in charge elsewhere

WEST PORTSMOUTH – Todd Gilliland made sure not to take all the credit.

“It makes me happy for them that our success has helped them along the way,” Portsmouth West’s sixth-year football coach said July 14, referring to a trio of his former assistants now entering their first season as head coaches elsewhere. “But they’ve earned everything they got, because those guys are top-notch coaches.”

In so doing, Gilliland illustrated the point each of his former sideline sidekicks made.

Notre Dame’s Steven Irwin, Minford’s Josh Bailey and South Point’s Brian Wroten are the manifestation of Gilliland's coaching tree beginning to sprout.

Each did their time with Gilliland’s Senators. Each touted the culture he's built on the West Side and consider themselves better equipped to run their own programs because of being part of it.

“He has established a clear standard, and the players completely buy into it," Bailey said. "Because of that player buy-in, the school and the community fully rally behind the program.

“On top of that, he surrounds himself with a dedicated staff who are willing to do whatever it takes to compete at the highest level. When you are part of an environment with that kind of alignment and work ethic, it naturally prepares guys to step up and run their own programs.”

Gilliland puts assistant coaches in position to grow, Wroten and Irwin each said, by giving them meaningful tasks and responsibilities.

“Coach Gilliland empowers his assistants,” Wroten said. “He doesn't just assign jobs, he teaches you why things are done and gives you opportunities to lead. That prepares coaches to think like head coaches instead of just position coaches.”

Concurred Irwin: “Todd does a great job of empowering his staff, while holding the entirety of the program together. It helps knowing your head coach has the utmost confidence in you to do a great job. Then, if you make a mistake, you know Todd will be there to help you figure out a solution together and continue to build.”

Area programs with coaching vacancies have found that what West has done under Gilliland is worth trying to replicate. The Senators are 38-21 in five seasons under his direction, with the crown jewel in that tenure an 11-2 2022 campaign that culminated in a Southern Ohio Conference Division II title and third-round postseason appearance.

That preceded consecutive eight-win seasons in 2023 and ‘24, and though West slipped to six victories last fall, it has won a playoff game in each of the last two years, a program first.

“It is great to see that Todd, staff and players throughout the years have created a program that others in the area want to possibly emulate through new hires,” Irwin said. “The brand of West Side football that players and staff created in recent years is something that is special, and it shows.”

Bailey’s connection with Gilliland dates back the furthest of the trio. He played for Gilliland at Sciotoville East. He also worked one season on Gilliland’s staff at West between stints as an assistant at Minford.

He’s also the only one who will have to coach against his old boss in 2026. Minford is scheduled to host the Senators in an SOC II game on Sept. 25.

It’ll be their third meeting on opposite sidelines, Bailey said.

"I honestly look forward to it, though," Bailey said. "I have so much love and respect for the West staff and their players, so getting to compete against them is always a highlight."

Irwin, Bailey and Wroten are each entering their first season running their own squads, while former Senators assistant Trenton Fike went with Irwin to the Titans. Gilliland is excited to follow their progress.

"We always hate to see those guys go, but at the same time, I think you want to have people on your staff that have aspirations of being a head coach one day or growing in their career," Gilliland said. "It's exciting to see that around the area, the guys I've been able to hopefully have a part in their growth."

None would disagree.

"When you see former assistants leading programs across the region, it speaks to the investment he made in the people around him, not just the players,” Wroten said of Gilliland. “Every coach is going to put their own personality and philosophy into their program, and I've certainly done that at South Point, but there are lessons I learned from coach Gilliland about organization, preparation and building relationships that I'll carry with me throughout my career. It's rewarding to see that influence spread throughout southeastern Ohio.”