Darrick Kent has resigned as Rock Island High soccer coach after turning around the program.
Kent took over the program in 2010, leading the Rocks to their first Western Big 6 Conference title last season.
The unexpected change for Kent comes after his wife, Amy, recently joined a San Francisco-based tech start-up, which required the family to relocate to the Chicago suburbs.
“This wasn’t something I went looking for,” Amy Kent told Dispatch-Argus.
Darrick, who worked with his wife in rebuilding the program, said he can see the Rocks’ program being strong for years to come.
“Rock Island has always had raw talent, it was about getting them to play in an organized way,” he said. “Getting them to play as a team was a struggle at the start. Our mission was to get Rocky soccer back to being a big-time competitor. We wanted the kids to have fun, learn how to win and connect not only as a team but life-long friends.”
Kent hopes to coach high school soccer again in the suburbs and plans to start doing so on the club level immediately, he said.
Kelli and Doug Bowman will take over the leadership, along with Matt Ash, who have all been key board members.
Alerts Sign-up