New football coach headed to South Tahoe High from Lodi

Tokay High School (Lodi) football coach and athletic director Louis Franklin announced Monday he will be stepping down at the end of the school year after being offered “an opportunity to join Lake Tahoe Unified School District.”

Franklin, a 2000 Tokay graduate, has been the school’s head football coach since 2007 and the athletic director since 2010, when he replaced Jeff Johnston.
Franklin was 38-46 as Tokay’s head coach, including an 0-4 record in the playoffs, but finished with three winning seasons.

“I thought I wouldn’t be making an announcement like this for another 10 years — after my son finished high school here at Tokay,” Franklin began his letter to the high school’s staff. “But, an opportunity has presented itself that I cannot pass up.”

In addition to being the school’s football coach and athletic director, Franklin takes on the boys golf team in the spring — and all that is on top of his duties as a special education teacher. He will coach football and teach special education at South Tahoe High School in South Lake Tahoe.

“I wasn’t really looking. I think people in the local community and communities abroad kind of saw what the coaches have been developing here,” Franklin said. “I think Tokay is in the best spot it’s ever been. I honestly feel Tokay will not miss a beat because of all the awesome coaches we have on site and in the classrooms.”

South Tahoe High will be Franklin’s third coaching and teaching stop. He began his career teaching and coaching freshman and junior-varsity football at Weston Ranch in Stockton before moving to Tokay.

His departure leaves principal Erik Sandstrom with plenty of work to do.
“He and I have been talking. He’s been very good about letting me know he was looking at other opportunities,” Sandstrom said. “I think some of the things he was looking at came into focus very fast.”

For Sandstrom, the early notice helps immensely, especially with Franklin wearing so many different hats at the school.

“We’ll have plenty to do in the next couple of months,” Sandstrom said. “We’ll have some big shoes to fill, but the last five years he’s done a phenomenal job. We’ve seen a lot of growth in our athletic programs, and he’s great with the special ed kids.

“It’s kind of phenomenal the things he does. He’s very much in it for the kids.”

Editor's Note: Officials with LTUSD were unavailable for contact.

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