A huge smile drew across Jared Mundt’s face when asked about growing up and being involved in athletics at Ottawa High School.

“What a wonderful experience,” Mundt said. “I have so many great memories and played for so many great coaches here. I’m just so excited for this next step.”

That next step is becoming the new varsity football coach for the Pirates. Mundt takes over for former coach Chad Gross, who will be moving on to take over as athletic director. Gross was 15-55 in his eight seasons with his 2022 team advancing to the Class 5A playoffs.

“As a graduate and former player here at Ottawa, I wouldn’t say I’m more nervous about taking this position, but I do feel I have more passion,” Mundt. “Your hometown is your hometown; you want your team to do well. I’m grateful the good Lord gave me this opportunity and I’m excited to see where he leads me with it.”

Mundt was a three-sport athlete at Ottawa, including being the starting quarterback his junior and senior seasons for Hall of Fame coach Tim Jobst.

After graduating in 2006, Mundt played quarterback for two different NCAA Division III college teams, Monmouth College his freshman year and Concordia University Chicago his final three years.

After college Mundt was an assistant coach at Prairie Central for five years and has been the offensive coordinator at La Salle-Peru while also teaching math.

“I want high-octane, passionate players on both sides of the ball,” Mundt said. “I also want our team to be a physical team, so we are going to have to understand that the weight room is very important. It’s just a fact that every season your roster is going to have different strengths and weaknesses, but things like discipline, hustle and passion should always be there.”

Mundt says he’s set a program model for this year and likely going forward.

“One ship, one crew,” Mundt said. “I think that the idea and the metaphor of the ship and the crew is very fitting with us being the Pirates.

“As coaches, we’ll help steer the ship, but it’s up to the players and their crew to decide how they handle the sails and work together when rough waters hit — whether that’s adversity in a game or a tough half. How they respond in those moments will depend on the leadership and teamwork within their crew.

“One crew is making sure each member of the team is working not only to make themselves better but also working to make everyone around them better.”

Mundt says he’s hopeful that some students who haven’t given football a try will.

“I know for a fact we have the athletes in this school to put together a very competitive football team,” Mundt said. “The ‘one ship’ part of that is making sure everyone on the team and coaching staff is on the same page. Football is a hard game, but it can also be a rewarding experience.

“I’m hoping we can get some of these athletes who have been focused on one sport to give football a try.”