Noblesville High School varsity football coach Justin Roden announced this morning that he will not be returning to Noblesville for the next season due to personal family needs.

Roden told his football players in a meeting this morning and Noblesville Schools later issued a press release confirming the resignation.

Roden will be relocating to the Cincinnati area to coach at Oak Hills High School, located close to the border of Indiana and Ohio. He previously served as the defensive coordinator for the Oak Hills football team.

Coach Roden was the 23rd head football coach in Noblesville High School history and held the job since 2018.

Noblesville High School athletic director Leah Woolridge wished the best for Roden moving forward.

“He’s a great coach, a great person, and you know, we understand [him] going back closer to home for family reasons,” Woolridge said. “It’s a big loss for us but we hope for the best for him and his family.”

Woolridge said that the search for a replacement will begin immediately, 

“We’ll begin the search process right away and try to get someone in-house as soon as possible.” Woolridge said, “We want the new coach to come in December, or if not, shortly after that and get acquainted with the team and have a chance to talk with the coaching staff that’s on hand now and try to get that all figured out before the end of school, which, believe it or not, happens really quickly. We’ll use the same process we used last time and try to get a good fit for us.”

Senior Kody Leach, who played two seasons under Roden and was also a team captain for the football team, stated that Roden’s departure was a surprise to him, but it wasn’t unprecedented.

Leach said, “I was surprised but not completely shocked about it.”

Leach’s relationship with Roden had grown from the two seasons he had under Roden, making this resignation more difficult to take.

“Even though we are both leaving I will miss him next semester.” Leach said, “Coach Roden was one of the most fun and colorful coaches I have ever played for. Every practice had something different from him and it made practice more interesting. I would say he has helped me become a better player and man.”

Additional reporting by Kaleigh Newton and Parker Mutter.