Perennial football power Mountain View hires its next coach. ‘We know we got our guy’
Searching to replace one of the state’s most successful high school football coaches, Mountain View didn’t have to look far.
The Mavericks have tabbed longtime assistant Brian Compton as their next head coach. He steps in for Judd Benedick, who resigned in December after 15 seasons.
The West Ada school board officially approved the hiring Monday evening, and the school announced the third head coach in program history Tuesday.
“Brian has been Judd Benedick’s right-hand man for 14 years,” Mountain View athletic director Scott Dew said. “He helped build the program into what it is today. I’ve known Brian a long time, and he’s one of smartest, hardest-working guys I’ve ever come across.”
Compton, 46, served as the Mavericks’ offensive coordinator the past 14 seasons, building one of the state’s most potent offenses alongside Benedick, who ran Mountain View’s defense.
He inherits a program fresh off a 5A Southern Idaho Conference championship that has made the playoffs nine years in a row.
“He is very much a core part of our program and has been for years,” Dew said. “After the season we just had, we know we couldn’t go wrong (with him). It was the perfect fit. The coaches on staff already recommended him to be our next coach.
“… We’re more excited than ever. We know we got our guy.”
Compton previously served as a head coach once before, leading Timberline to a 6-19 record from 2005 to 2007. He said he never seriously considered another head coaching job because of the environment Benedick built at Mountain View.
But when the Mavericks’ veteran coach stepped down, Compton said he had to step up.
“This is a place I’ve put my heart and soul into, and it has a really bright future,” Compton said. “We have a tremendous staff of older, veteran-type coaches, along with some really good young coaches that are going to get better and better. We have an amazing, brand-new facility, and a ton of upside.
“I wanted to be a part of that moving forward. I felt like I owed it to our guys, and I owed it to our staff.”
Compton said 95% of the Mavericks’ coaching staff across all levels will return next season, further boosting the program’s continuity. Five starters also return on both sides of the ball.
Compton said the largest hurdle remains replacing Benedick as the defensive coordinator. He said he doesn’t plan to change much in a program that perennially competes deep into the playoffs.
“A lot of the core culture is going to be very, very similar,” Compton said. “Obviously, Judd had a really special touch with that stuff, and I’ve got to be my own guy. But I’ve definitely been a part of everything, and we’re going to continue that.”
This story was originally published January 11, 2022 at 6:28 PM.
