Football: Kaider named new football coach at Mundelein

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George Kaider

Updated: February 27, 2012 8:07AM

George Kaider, Mundelein’s new football coach, is hitting the job running.

He wants the Mustangs to hit the weight room. And if they run to lift weights, even better.

Kaider replaces veteran coach Bob Stone, who retired in December. The Mustangs, who are coming off a winless season, often struggled to match up physically with the bigger schools — and bigger players — on their schedule. They have won only four games during the past four seasons. The last time they qualified to the state playoffs was 2004.

“You don’t win football games August to November; you win from November to August,” Kaider said. “We’re going to have a weightlifting program that will build (muscle), character and winners. Never underestimate what a great offseason program can do for the character development of our team.”

Character development is a big deal for Kaider, a guidance counselor at Mundelein. He plans to assign each player in the program into a huddle group, led by a coach and a senior.

“Every kid in the program will participate,” he said. “We’ll develop leadership skills, have team outings and work in the community. We want the huddle groups to (facilitate) peer mentoring and connect the younger kids to the older kids.”

Kaider, 41, arrived at Mundelein three years ago but was not involved with the football program. In addition to his counseling responsibilities, he serves as an assistant wrestling coach.

Instead of coaching football, Kaider, previously a head coach at Pekin (2008) and Richmond-Burton (2000), and a long-time defensive coordinator at McHenry, spent the time watching his three sons play football.

His oldest son will be a senior in the fall at Burlington Catholic Central. His second son, a freshman, plans to transfer to Mundelein at the start of the next school year. Kaider said that he and his family are looking forward to moving to Mundelein.

“Both of the previous times I was a head coach, the situations were very different than they are now,” he said. “At Mundelein, I’ll have a position at the school and be able to really see the development of the program. This is an incredible opportunity. You don’t get a chance very often to build something from the ground up. This is a chance to be part of something that is really important for our school and our community.”

Kaider’s football journey began at Palatine High School in the mid-1980s. Kaider, a linebacker, was a captain on the Pirates’ 1987 team, which went undefeated in the regular season. He went on to play NCAA Division II football at Winona State University (Minn.).

“Mundelein is getting someone who is loyal and dedicated, someone who has a great rapport with the kids,” said Joe Petricca, Kaider’s high school coach. “He understands the game and what it takes to be successful. For him, it’s as much about developing good people as it is good football players.”

Kaider spent close to a decade as a defensive coordinator at McHenry. During that time, he bonded with head coach Mike Noll.

“George has a lot of experience in football and education,” said Noll, who is now is the head coach at Glenbrook South. “He’s going into the position with a good vision for what a program is supposed to be; he’ll execute that plan.”

On defense, the Mustangs will likely line up in a 4-3, cover-2 scheme. Simplicity will be a focus.

“We’ll have (defined) reads and responsibilities,” Kaider said. “We want to create an attacking defense with kids that love to run and hit.”

Kaider would like to run a balanced offense and move the ball on the ground — and in the air.

“We want our quarterback to be our best and most athletic player who can run and throw,” he said. “We want to be physical coming off the ball and spread the defense out.”

Kaider wants many of his best players on defense to be staples on special teams.

“The goal of special teams is really to gain an advantage with field position,” he said.

Kaider is hard at work interviewing prospective assistant coaches.

“The first thing we need to do is get the right coaching staff in place,” he said.

Kaider knows many of the players from his work as a counselor, and through his presence at the school, but he can’t wait to formally meet with his new team.

“We need to really set a tone that you don’t just show up and win,” he said. “You have to pay the price, work hard and believe in yourself. The message to the kids at our school is that the Mundelein program will be one where you can develop into a winner.”