FOOTBALL: Lake Orion AD Chris Bell to return to lead football program
LAKE ORION — What is old is new again.
Current Lake Orion High School Director of Athletics Chris Bell will return to the sidelines as the Lake Orion’s football coach, effective immediately.
Bell coached the Dragons from 1998-2016 before stepping down in the spring of 2017 to become the school’s A.D. He will retain that full-time administrative position as well.
Chris Bell,
Lake Orion
Bell replaces John Blackstock, Bell’s longtime friend and coaching colleague who resigned earlier this month. Blackstock has been part of the school’s football program for more than two decades, as either a sub-varsity coach, varsity assistant or head coach.
Lake Orion is coming off a disappointing 3-6 campaign where the Dragons were fifth in the OAA Red Division at 1-4.
“I’m beyond excited to get a chance to get back on the field to work with our players. Our goal will be the same as it is for all of our athletics programs, win championships on the field while developing champion student-athletes.”
Bell is the school’s all-time winningest coach, helping the Dragons to the Division 1 state runner-up finish in 2008 and to the school’s only D-1 state title in 2010. During his tenure, the Dragons were usually one of the better teams inside the Oakland Activities Association and talent-laden Oakland County and qualified for the MHSAA state playoffs 16 times during that span.
After four years as a head coach at other high schools in the Metro Detroit and Flint areas, Bell was named the Lake Orion’s head coach in the spring of 1998 and remained the head coach through the 2016 season.
He was named the Detroit Lions Michigan Coach of the Year in 2010, MHSFCA regional coach of the year in 1994, 1998, 2002 and 2006, honored as the Detroit Free Press Metro Coach of the Year in 1998 and the Detroit News Metro North Coach of the Year in 2005. His teams have won six league titles, seven district titles, four regional titles and made two state finals trips, including winning the aforementioned 2010 state title.
He compiled a 149-59 record in 19 seasons (.717 win percentage) as the Dragons’ head coach and his teams qualified for the state playoffs in 16 of those 19 seasons.
As a student, Bell was Lake Orion’s quarterback on two league title winning teams (greater Oakland Activities League) in both 1984 and 1985 before earning a bachelor’s degree in economics and management and a secondary education certificate from Albion College, where he also played quarterback. He has a masters from the University of Detroit Mercy in educational administration and served as an assistant principal at Lake Orion prior to becoming the school’s athletics director.
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