Ron Butschle had no intentions of leaving Sto-Rox High School - then he got the letter.

Butschle, the Vikings football coach the past four years, received a letter from Seneca Valley saying their head coaching position was open.

"It asked if I was interested," said Butschle. "I really had to think about it, to throw my hat into the ring knowing full well I've been teaching at Sto-Rox for 15 years.

"That's my bread and butter, taking care of my family," he added

After two interviews, Butschle, 38, was offered the position Feb. 23 and will be named Seneca Valley's newest football coach after a vote at Monday's school board meeting.

Butschle replaces Bob Ceh, whose contract was not renewed after last season, his third with the Raiders.

Seneca Valley athletic director Terry Henry would not comment on the hiring until it is made official next week.

"I have an opportunity to go to a big school and be in a conference of so many good teams," said Butschle, who will be an English teacher at the school.

"Hopefully, I'll have to opportunity not to just make Seneca Valley competitive, but down the road win conference championships," he added.

Butschle, from Moon Township, was 26-17 in his four years with Sto-Rox. He was 20-4 over the past two seasons and led the team to the WPIAL Class A championship game this past year, losing to Springdale, 30-13.

The Vikings (11-2) relied on a balanced attack, as four-year starter Adam DiMichele, who signed with Penn State, passed for 2,700 yards while the ground game rolled up more than 2,500 yards.

"We're a multiple set, and in terms of what we do for a game plan is according to what teams we're playing. I like to put our guys in a position where they'll be successful," Butschle said.

"We've run the same offensive system. We didn't create the system for Adam," he added.

Butschle won't be coming to Seneca Valley alone. He will bring along four of his assistant coaches: Dan Bradley (offensive coordinator-quarterbacks coach), Rich Chambers (defensive coordinator-defensive line), Dave Coleman (running backs-secondary) and Chris Marnich (receivers-secondary assistant).

The first three coaches have been with Butschle for his four years at Sto-Rox, Marnich as been with the coach for three years and also played for Butschle.

"Having these guys is important to me because they're great coaches and are of great character," he said.

"The one thing special with this staff is a good rapport with the players. It'll take time since we haven't met the kids yet, but I'm hoping we'll all get along," the coach added.

Butschle grew up in Chicago and played football and baseball at Marian Catholic, where he graduated in 1983. He played outside linebacker, defensive end and tight end until his senior year, when he played offensive tackle.

"I was the biggest player we had," Butschle said.

He attended Western Illinois for three years, then transferred to Duquesne University for two years, graduating with a degree in advertising while he played baseball for the Dukes. He then added a secondary degree in English.

He served as an assistant coach at Sto-Rox from 1990-93, then left along with head coach Larry DiIanni for Canon-McMillan, where he was an assistant from 1994-96.

He returned to Sto-Rox as an assistant under Bruce Byrom before taking over the helm in 2000.

His first two Vikings squads went 3-7 and 3-6 before going 9-2 and reaching the Class A quarterfinals.

Last season, the team made it all the way to Heinz Field before losing to the Dynamos.

Butschle is the Raiders' fourth coach in eight seasons. Seneca Valley reached the playoffs three times during that span and posted a 2-3 postseason record.

He hopes to bring a degree of stability not seen since Henry's 12-year stint from 1984-95.

"Not to knock anyone, but my coaches, including myself, we're making a commitment," Butschle said. "We're not looking to come in and try it for a couple of years.

"I'm not Joe Namath and predicting championships. We'll work our rear ends off. The plan is to be there awhile. Seneca Valley is not a stepping stone. Sto-Rox was not stepping stone," Butschle added.