CLOQUET — On a picturesque summer evening, Jeff Ojanen sat on a soccer sideline and watched his daughter play the sport she loves, and that’s when he realized it was over. Ojanen, who spent the past three years as Cloquet’s head football coach, arrived just in time to see the second half of his daughter’s game. He raced over to the field after completing practice on a Monday evening, the one day a week his ‘Jacks finish early.
ADVERTISEMENT “Sitting there watching her play, I started to think,” Ojanen said. “She was really looking forward to seeing both of her parents there. She loves that.
I started thinking that I didn’t know if I was OK doing it like this anymore.” At that moment, Ojanen knew it was time for him to step away. His decision ends a tenure that spans more than two decades and includes a three-year stint as head coach and 15-plus as a defensive coordinator and assistant coach under Tom Lenarz.
Ojanen made the announcement official on Wednesday, Nov. 20, when he met with the team before school to let them know it’s time for him to prioritize spending time with and coaching his two daughters. “I told the kids today, and it was emotional,” Ojanen said.
“I wanted the kids to hear it from me. It’s tough to leave next year’s senior class because you’ve been with them for so long, but that’s always going to happen, no matter when you decide to be done. It was emotional, but I also know it was the right decision.
” Football is not j.