Brett Ebling

After eight years with the Gowanda/Pine Valley football program, Brett Ebling has risen to the top.

With three seasons of junior varsity experience and five years as a varsity assistant under his belt, Ebling is now officially the head coach of the Panthers for the 2022 season.

“I went through the process to be the coach in May,” Ebling stated. “I’ve been with the program for eight years. I feel I definitely earned my stripes and I am really excited for the opportunity.”

Ebling spent time under head coaches Sean Gabel and Tyler Thompson, but now it is his turn to lead the Panthers.

“I can’t say enough great things about both Sean and Tyler,” Ebling said about his time as an assistant. “Both of them helped me become a better coach in a lot of ways. I will continue their passion to make Gowanda/Pine Valley football successful. Every coach I have worked with in any sport I try to take something from them to make myself better.”

Ebling’s career in football began at 8 and continued until his senior year at Eden High School where he played in a sectional final. In his playing days he was a running back and a linebacker. After playing, Ebling student taught at Gowanda and is now a physical education teacher there.

Under Ebling, effort will be key, but he plans to emphasize molding smart football players.

“Yes, I want the kids to work hard and show effort,” Ebling said of his players. “But at the same time you have to learn the game. If you can outsmart the other team you’ll be one step ahead of the game.”

The Panthers have struggled finding success on the field the past few seasons and Ebling plans to turn that around. Gowanda/Pine Valley went 3-6 overall, including 1-5 in Class C South last fall.

“Participation is the biggest thing,” Ebling stated about turning the program around. “The more kids you get out to play, the better odds of success. Getting kids excited to play football in Gowanda along with Pine Valley and to be a part of the program. Hard work and effort from the top down is going to be big. Each day we’ll just strive to be better as a program than the day before and good things will happen.”

Having been apart of the program for so long, Ebling will have a leg up by already knowing many of the players coming into this season.

“I have known some of these kids since they were in fourth grade,” Ebling added. “Being the head coach, knowing the kids already and having an established relationship with them will help. It will also help with me already forming those relationships in the little league program in Gowanda and school administration.”

The Panthers’ season begins later this week with practices beginning on Saturday. The first game of the season will be on Sept. 2 against Silver Creek/Forestville in Gowanda.