Longtime Houston head coach steps down

HOUSTON — For much of his life, Norm Bouchard has been a coach.

Football, basketball, baseball, track and field — for a long time, being a coach was the norm for Bouchard. But now, the longtime Houston mentor and administrator is shifting his focus to a different area in his life, and has stepped down from his position of head coach of the Houston High football program.

“In my own personal heart, I want to spend more time with my wife and son,” Bouchard said recently.

Bouchard, who also serves as the school’s activities director, has been with the Hawks football program in some capacity since the team’s inception in 1997. He was the team’s defensive coordinator and offensive line coach for seven seasons, under former head coach Mat Bredburg, before his promotion to head coach in 2004.

When he took the reins of the program, Bouchard said he wanted provide a long tenure.

“I figured I’d be there for a while,” Bouchard said. “My intent was to be there quite a while.”

Bouchard said he’d wondered about the right time to step down before, but wanted to leave with his current senior class.

“This is the crew that has got us through those two tough years,” Bouchard said. “It was the intent the whole time to finish this year, this season.”

During his eight seasons as head coach, Bouchard guided Houston to the postseason multiple times. Among the highlights during his tenure was a Greatland Conference championship in 2006. The Bouchard-led Hawks also finished in a tie for second in the historically tough Northern Lights Conference in 2008.

“There were some big wins, some big losses,” Bouchard said. “It was a roller-coaster ride for sure.”

Bouchard, a graduate of Susitna Valley High School in Talkeetna, played two years of college football at the University of Western Montana, despite playing only one year of high school football.

Bouchard played a year of prep football in Gunnison, Colo., before moving to Alaska and attending Su Valley, which has never fielded a football team. Bouchard did play basketball for the Rams, and went to college hoping to play on the hardwood at the next level.

“I went to college and tried to play basketball, but 6-foot-4 center, post players are a dime a dozen in college,” Bouchard said.

Bouchard said he was spotted while playing intramural basketball, and someone suggested he try out for the football team. He ended up playing offensive tackle for two seasons with the school.

“I definitely didn’t think it was even possible (to play college football),” Bouchard said. “But I went from being too short and slow (in basketball), to big and quick (in football). It worked out pretty good.”

Bouchard coached youth baseball and track and field while living in Colorado after college. In 1993, Bouchard took over the track and field program at Houston High. In 1994, he started coaching girls basketball at HHS. He was the head coach of Houston girls hoops for eight years, and has also been an assistant with the boys and girls programs since.

Bouchard said he always knew this is something he’d do.

“I knew from Day 1 I wanted to coach,” Bouchard said.

When looking back at his long career, Bouchard said his time with the athletes overshadows everything.

“What really stands out is coaching the kids. Houston kids have been fantastic to coach,” Bouchard said.

Bouchard said he’ll continue serving as the school’s activities director and would like to explore the option working in another area of school administration in the future. He said he may roam the sidelines again one day, but probably not as a head coach.

Regardless of where his path leads, Bouchard will never fly away from his love for the Hawks.

“My heart’s in Houston for sure,” Bouchard said. “I bleed red and black.”

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.