FREDERICKTOWN — Tim Doup arrived 30 minutes early to Fredericktown’s school board meeting Tuesday night.
The 31-year coach had been here before – three times, in fact, during the interview process – but he’d yet to fully take in the town.
It all seemed nice enough. And then he worked his way toward Stadium Drive, where the sound of fans cheering and starter pistols popping and coaches barking rang through the warm spring air.
The Freddies were hosting a track meet.
“Obviously, my juices got going,” Doup said with a smile.
Doup, a Delaware County native with Knox County ties, told the school board Tuesday this is exactly where he needed to be. And the school board agreed.
The board voted unanimously, upon the recommendation of Superintendent Gary Chapman, to hire Doup as the district’s next athletic director. He will start Aug. 1, taking the place of current AD and assistant high school/middle school principal Adam Brown, who will shift into a new role as the middle school principal.
“I’m very excited to get started in the Fredericktown community,” Doup told the board, expressing his gratitude. “This is something I’ve really wanted to do. I know everybody thinks I left Otterbein and, ‘How am I gonna handle this?’ This is exactly what I’ve wanted to do.”
Who is Tim Doup?
Doup spent the last 20 years at his alma mater, Otterbein University, serving as the football program’s offensive coordinator for nine before spending the last 11 as the head football coach and assistant athletic director.
Doup compiled a 41-64 record during his time at the helm, earning Ohio Athletic Conference Coach of the Year honors twice. He worked with more than 50 all-OAC selections as head coach and helped develop eight all-Americans during his time on staff.
Doup also guided the Cardinals through tumultuous times in recent years. He served as a stabilizing voice following the tragic passing of star defensive lineman Nigel Chatman in 2019, then led the program through the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021.
Doup has experience coaching at the high school level as well. After graduating from Otterbein in 1990 with a degree in physical education (and having lettered all four years at center, eventually becoming a team captain his senior season), he served as an assistant football coach (1991-1994) and assistant track coach (1991-95) at his alma mater, Olentangy High School.
He also served as an assistant wrestling coach at Upper Arlington (1991-2002) during that time.
Doup was eventually hired onto the Golden Bears’ football coaching staff in 1995, where he served eight seasons as an assistant. Over the course of his career there, Upper Arlington won five conference championships, advanced to the Division I state semifinals in 1997 and 1998, and won the state title in 2000.
Doup was selected Central Ohio Division I Assistant Coach of the Year in 1997. He also taught physical education at Upper Arlington from 1998 to 2002, and received his master’s degree in the art of teaching from Marygrove College in 2002.
Doup, whose extended family is from Mount Vernon, is a Lewis Center native and a 1986 graduate of Olentangy High School (“back when it was only one building,” he cracked). He currently resides in his hometown with his wife, Helyn. The couple has three children – Colton, Kaden and Kennedie – all of whom are currently students at Otterbein.
An administrative transition
Doup’s appointment Tuesday followed months of planning around the future of Fredericktown Local Schools’ administrative office.
Chapman said discussions about rethinking the office’s setup ramped up shortly after his arrival last August.
“(There had been) a lot of discussions in the past (about it),” Chapman said. “A lot of it had to do with our middle school.”
Under the current staffing structure, the district has a high school/middle school principal and an assistant high school/middle school principal, who also serves as the athletic director.
Chapman said he and others within the district felt this setup served high school students well, but not middle school students.
“Even though we’re all under one roof, the middle school right now – that’s (grades) six through eight – they were still under the high school’s purview,” Chapman said. “So we were not providing enough attention, in my estimation.”
Chapman decided the district would need to go in another direction in 2023-24 – leaving the current setup behind and expanding the administrative office to three positions: a middle school principal, a high school principal and an athletic director.
“We really did a lot talking with the teachers, as far as establishing a true middle school concept, and that’s what we want to get back to. Because that transition from fifth to sixth grade is significant – not to mention the transition from eighth to ninth. And so what we need to do is really get back to a middle school concept and take care of those kids,” Chapman said.
“Rising (into) fifth grade and sixth grade is completely different than doing the same in eighth grade and ninth grade. And when they’re under that same schedule, a traditional high school schedule, we were maybe not meeting their needs the way we should have been. So that is the intent with the leadership refocusing.”
During this time, Brown said he began talking with Chapman about potentially shifting positions in the district. Brown, who has served as the AD/assistant principal since 2020, said he was looking for a change.
“I love athletics, so this was not an easy decision,” Brown said. “But I was ready for a new adventure, a different challenge.”
Brown had already established a relationship with the middle school staff, having worked primarily with them over the last two years. He applied to become the middle school principal in 2023-24, and on Feb. 14, the board approved his appointment.
“I like the middle school grade level and I enjoy the middle school staff, so I thought it’d be a good transition. And honestly, it will give me some more free time in the evenings and in the summer to spend time with family,” Brown said.
“I’ll still go to athletic events, but I’ll just be there to support the kids and not have to worry about setting everything up and tearing everything down all the time.”
Brown will finish out his current three-year contract before taking over as the middle school principal Aug. 1. He expects to spend the summer months helping Doup prepare for his new gig.
Brown said the decision to stay in the district was easy.
“I definitely love it here. Like I’ve said before, I grew up right up the road in Bellville, I went to Clear Fork, and the community here is just awesome. The kids are great, the staff’s great; you can’t really ask for a better place to be, honestly,” Brown said.
“Since day one, I’ve felt welcome here and it’s felt like home. … It’s definitely a place you want to stay at once you’re here.”
Brown said he’s proud of what the district and community have been able to accomplish athletically over the last three years, and he’s optimistic about the future.
“I think one of the big things we did – and this was not just myself, but with the help of people here – was we redid the Hall of Fame and got that done. We put up the electronic display (in the high school commons) to really kind of showcase the athletic achievements here at Fredericktown, because we hadn’t quite done that yet,” Brown said.
“We put up signs to recognize state champions in the commons, trying to recognize the past and connect that with the kids we have here now. And we’re having our Hall of Fame induction ceremony in May, we’re bringing that back. So those are really the biggest things we did.
“But a lot of the athletic achievements, that’s because the coaches do such a great job. It has nothing to do with me. I just try to support them and let the coaches do their thing. I was fortunate, my first year here, Thomas Caputo won (Fredericktown’s and Knox County’s first cross country state title). That’s maybe something you’re never going to get to be a part of again, so that was special.
“We’ve had a lot of great tournament runs in cross country, track and baseball; our softball team’s run last year; and with football making it back into the playoffs. So I feel like Fredericktown athletics are heading in the right direction, and I hope Tim can come in and really push it to that next level, because he’ll just be able to focus on the athletic piece of it. That’s what I’m hopeful for.”
Chapman commended Brown for his leadership over the last three years, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“What I’ve seen coming in is Adam’s done an outstanding job, as far as being the athletic director. The things that he’s put in place down there (with) the Hall of Fame wall and the video board, different things like that, it’s a credit to him. And he did that in such a short time, especially through COVID. And he led through COVID as well. So that in and of itself is a monumental task, and he did an outstanding job,” Chapman said.
“He also then built outstanding relationships as an assistant principal with not only our kids and our teachers, but also the community. And he’s a natural fit, with his leadership qualities, at the middle school level.”
Fredericktown is still searching for its next high school principal.
Brent Garee, who has served as the high school/middle school principal for the last four years, will leave at the end of the school year to become Centerburg’s next high school principal. Fredericktown’s school board accepted his resignation March 15.
The deadline to apply for Fredericktown’s high school principal position was Monday. Chapman said Tuesday the district received 11 applications, and that interviews will begin this week.
‘A track record of success’
Fredericktown began searching for its next AD in mid-February, Chapman said, after the board approved Brown’s switch to middle school principal.
The district received 31 applications over a three-week span. Preliminary interviews followed, Chapman said, with four candidates making it to the committee interview stage.
Doup eventually received and accepted the job offer. Chapman said his experience set him apart, among other factors.
“(Doup) brings with him a wealth of experience in education, coaching, and athletic administration. …” Chapman said in a statement. “(Doup) is a dedicated and passionate individual who has devoted his career to helping student-athletes achieve their full potential.
“He has a track record of success in building strong relationships with coaches, athletes, and parents, and has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to promoting the values of sportsmanship, respect, and hard work.
“In addition to his impressive professional background, (Doup) is also a devoted husband and father of three. He understands the importance of a balanced life and the role that athletics can play in fostering physical and mental well-being for students and their families.”
Doup stepped down from his roles at Otterbein in November, following the 2022 football season. He said it was time for a change after three decades on the sidelines.
“I just came to a point in my life where, you know, I’ve coached football for 30 years – 20 of them at the college level – and I think it was just time for me to do something different with my life,” Doup said.
“I’m not ready to retire. And being an assistant athletic director at Otterbein really got me thinking, ‘Hey, this is a direction I might want to go.’ And I saw this job open up and it just struck me, and I applied for it. This is a direction I’ve wanted to go. I wanna stay in athletics – I love being around coaches and kids, and that’s just me.
“You know, everybody’s like, ‘What, you’re not gonna go into the business world?’ And I’m like, ‘No. That’s not what I want to do. I want to be around kids and be around coaches in a community, and help them succeed in any way they can. So that’s sort of how I ended up here.”
Doup said he considered several schools during the application process, but Fredericktown stood out due to its size and feel.
“There were some other (schools) out there. I think this was the tight-knit community, smaller community (I wanted),” Doup said. “Because when I went to Olentangy, it was one building. I mean, there was no town, there was no nothing. And that’s me. I don’t need the big school; that did not (matter). This did. This intrigued me.
“When I saw it, I’m like, ‘Wow.’ Because this is me, this is how I grew up. So I understand it a little bit more. That was what really drew me to this.”
Doup believes he will be able to bring “a different perspective” to Fredericktown, given his vast coaching experience.
“I’ve been there, where these coaches are. I’ve been through the ups, I’ve been through the downs. I think I can help them through some leadership stuff and just be there for them. Whatever they need to succeed – that’s all I want, is for them to succeed,” Doup said.
“So I think I can bring some experience. I’ve been there, done that. I’ve coached high school – I coached four sports in high school – before I went to the college level. And I just think, with me and my mentality, I’m very relaxed. I’m not a very aggressive, crazy guy. People always think of the head football coach as that; I’m the opposite. I’m that very cerebral, relaxed; helping hand, anything.
“The track coach asked me some questions during my interview and I’m like, ‘You need me to carry hurdles, I’ll carry ’em.’ I’m that kind of person. I just want to do everything I can for the community and see these student-athletes succeed.”
And success, Doup said, will be defined differently for each of Fredericktown’s athletic programs.
“I think the biggest thing is, I need to see what everybody has. I think one thing people asked me, even during the committee meetings, was, ‘How do you view success? Is it wins and losses?’ I don’t think so. …” Doup said.
“I need to meet with the coaches. I need to sit ’em down and say, ‘Hey, what are your expectations for next year? What do you have coming back and how do you feel?’ And I think we’ll judge success off of that.”
Success, in Doup’s eyes, also means having top-notch facilities. The incoming athletic director said he’s looking to make Fredericktown a destination for interscholastic competition in Ohio.
“I want to walk the facilities – really walk ’em – and see my vision, and what I can do to help, for practices and just the overall (experience),” Doup said.
“I want other schools to come to Fredericktown and when they leave go, ‘Wow, man. They’ve got a great place there.’ That’s what I want. I want people to come here and go to athletic events and say, ‘Boy, that was run really well, and (they had) great facilities and just overall leadership, our coaches and everything else. Just a great place.'”
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