Schaal steps down at Grayslake Central

Citing a desire to spend more time with his family, including two young children, Jason Schaal has stepped as Grayslake Central's head football coach.

Schaal submitted his letter of resignation right before Thanksgiving. He and his wife, Renee, have a daughter, Courtney, 7, and son, Jason Jr., 5.

"This past fall was the first time that I missed some family stuff," Schaal said. "I missed some sporting events for my kids, and that was trying on my wife. She was trying to be in two places at one time."

Schall's football teams won six games in five seasons. He came to Grayslake Central in 2013 from South Elgin, where he had stints as head softball and head girls basketball coach. An assistant under Ben Ault in his first year, he took over the Rams' football program in 2014. After back-to-back winless seasons, Grayslake Central snapped a 22-game losing streak and earned Schaal his first win as head coach with a Week-4 victory over Round Lake in 2016.

The Rams won three games in 2017 and then just two this past season.

Grayslake Central has not qualified for the state playoffs since 2011 and has only 5 postseason appearances in its history.

The Rams' next head coach will be their seventh in this century.