Bellevue Football's Hatch Will `Start Over' -- Hatch Leaves Bellevue, But Not Coaching Career

BELLEVUE - At 61, Dwaine Hatch is ready to start over.

The dean of KingCo Conference football coaches has retired from teaching and coaching at Bellevue High School, where he has spent the past 18 years.

"It's a tough decision," he said, "one of the toughest decisions I've ever had to make in my life. I've been doing this a long time and been at Bellevue High School a long time."

Hatch, who taught physical education and had taught German, said he retired from teaching for financial reasons. Having taught in the state for 33 years, he has been fully vested in the state's retirement program for three years. But for every year of teaching after 30, he said, his pension gets reduced.

"I can't afford to do that anymore," he said. "My financial adviser has explained this to me many times, and I haven't listened very well. I've been listening with my heart because I love coaching. He finally got my attention."

Hatch told his players about his retirement on Wednesday, and plans to be done at Bellevue by next Tuesday. If he's still there Feb. 1, he said, that would trigger another pension reduction.

Despite the decision to retire, Hatch doesn't want to quit coaching, but said he was asked by the district to leave coaching if he leaves teaching because the district wants a coach who's in the building.

Al Strand, Bellevue athletic director, said he wasn't aware Hatch was asked to quit coaching. "He said he decided he was going to retire," Strand said, adding that meant from both positions.

Regardless, Hatch said he looks at the Bellevue ending as a start of whatever he finds next.

"I want to be free to pursue other things, so I'm going to see what's out there," he said. "Evidently, there's a few other jobs out there."

At Class AAA schools alone, 10 other head football jobs are open in the state.

Hatch, who coached 12 winning teams at Bellevue, including the 1983 Class AAA state champion, said he hasn't applied for any new jobs yet.

"I want to get retired and then hit that hard," he said. "I'm going to look at all the ones that are open. There are a few around here."

Hatch, who was a finalist for the University of Puget Sound coaching job last year, said he would be interested in coaching in college, too. "If there was something open," he said. "Anything's possible."

Hatch's Bellevue teams made seven Class AAA state appearances in the past 14 seasons and won four KingCo titles.

"It's been a great 18 years," he said. "There isn't much we haven't done. It's been a great run."

Before taking over at Bellevue, Hatch spent eight years as an assistant coach at Bellevue's Newport High. He started out in the Everett School District, where he coached and taught in a junior high school.

"I have no regrets," he said. "I'm kind of excited about seeing what's out there."

Bourgette promoted

Bob Bourgette, 46, an assistant football coach at Kennedy High School for 23 years, has been promoted to the head coaching job. He succeeds Tom Merrill, who announced his resignation Monday.