CHERRY TWP — Moniteau didn’t have to look far to find its football coach.

Wade Vogan, 30, a former Sharon assistant coach now employed at Moniteau High School as a guidance counselor, was approved as the Warriors’ new grid mentor by the Moniteau School Board on Monday night.

This is the first head coaching job for Vogan, who was one of four people interviewed for the job.

“He is so enthusiastic and he’s a rules person,” said Joann Duke, head of Moniteau’s athletic committee. “That was one of the things that impressed me when he was interviewing.

“He said you have to learn to work within the rules. There’s so much positive energy there.”

Vogan replaces Cecil Blauser, who was 3-7 in his only year as Moniteau head coach. Jeff Campbell was 40-28 in seven years as head coach before Blauser, including a 12-1 record and District 9 championship in 2011.

Blauser was an assistant coach under the Warriors’ three previous head coaches and has been assisting Vogan in the weight room during this offseason.

“Cecil has been nothing but professional with me throughout this whole thing,” Vogan said. “I’d love to have him as part of this staff. That’s entirely up to him.”

Vogan hopes to keep the bulk of the current coaching staff in place “to keep familiarity” and has a coach or two from Sharon he may bring on board.

Moniteau won three of its final four games last year, and “we want to build off that, pick up that momentum and hit the ground running,” he said.

Vogan was a linebacker coach the past two years at Sharon. The Tigers were 2-7 in 2012 and finished 6-5 last year, losing in the playoffs to Girard.

Sharon had two players killed in an automobile accident a few days before that playoff game.

“Moniteau was gracious enough to allow me to continue coaching, to stay with those kids up there,” Vogan said. “They get it.”