By ROY HESS, Staff Writer
Jason Strunk’s time at Port Isabel as football coach/athletic director has come to an end.
He is returning to his native state to become strictly an athletic director at Manheim, Pa.
Strunk’s last day at Port Isabel is today. He said he’ll start his new job Wednesday and work from home for the time being.
The Tarpons are expected to begin the search for Strunk’s replacement immediately.
Strunk said not coaching and serving strictly as an athletic director at his new job will allow him more time to go watch his son, Mac Strunk, a graduating Port Isabel senior, play football at The Citadel and also help give him time to complete his master’s degree in athletic leadership from Clemson.
The departing coach said he is grateful for his time as the Tarpons’ coach.
“I’ve loved my time at Port Isabel,” Strunk said. “There are great kids here. We got to do a lot of good things with these guys. We got the offseason program rolling. Our freshman football team was undefeated, our junior varsity team had a good year and we had a bunch of sophomores starting on the varsity, so we’ve built for the future. It’s been fun building things up, and it’s a shame that I’m going to leave before seeing the fruits of the labor, but that’s life.
“These kids have been absolutely great,” he added. “They’re like my sons, and they’re an extension of my family. There were a lot of tears when I was talking to them (and letting them know about my plans). I can’t thank them enough.”
Strunk was Port Isabel’s football coach for two seasons and leaves with a 7-13 overall record guiding the Tarpons. He went 4-6 his first year in 2018 and 3-7 this past season.
One of the most memorable games during his tenure was a 57-56 back-and-forth, bi-district setback against Corpus Christi West Oso on Nov. 16, 2018, in Mercedes. There were more than 1,100 yards of offense combined by the two teams in that game, and at the end, the Tarpons barely missed a 27-yard field goal with seven seconds left.
Now Strunk moves on to his new employment opportunity.
“I’m excited about this new job,” he said. “It’s something I’ve been looking forward to, just being an athletic director and no more coaching. I’ve coached 25 years, and I’ve had a lot of fun doing it. I’ve enjoyed the athletic director part of the job (at Port Isabel, too). I’m just looking for a new adventure.
“This is a job opportunity that happened pretty quick,” he added.