After eight seasons that included a state championship and a 61-37-12 record, Dave Ellis has resigned as Philomath High School’s boys soccer coach.
Ellis coached the Warriors to the 2021 Class 4A state title, a season that will remain a cherished memory from his time at the helm.
“I came in and I wanted to develop and change the culture as much as I could, and that team represented the pinnacle of what I was trying to build,” he said. “We had a lot of kids in the program that year, a tight-knit group of juniors who were the backbone and then the seniors who provided leadership and sacrifice, and it all came together perfectly.”
In the 4A finale at Hillsboro, Philomath defeated Hidden Valley, 2-1, in a game that came down to penalty kicks.
“In subsequent years, we’ve had good teams and haven’t had that bit of luck or that bit of inspiration in those moments,” Ellis said. “That year with those boys, I’ll never forget that year. I’ll never forget those boys.”
The moment Ellis started thinking about stepping away came in late September on a bus trip to Sweet Home.
“I got a text from my second daughter, Lilly, that Sophie scored,” said Ellis, referring to his older daughter that played as a sophomore with the PHS girls. “And it was like, ‘I missed her first start, I missed her first varsity goal’ and just in that moment on the bus, I’m just like, ‘I’m in the wrong spot.’ It’s pretty simple.”
While family considerations played a significant role in his decision, Ellis also acknowledged the challenges of competing at the highest level year after year.
“I feel like I moved the program as far as I could for a while, but there are limitations,” Ellis said earlier this week. “I mean, it’s a brutal league to play in.”
The Warriors compete in one of the state’s most challenging conferences while being among the smaller schools in Class 4A. Oregon West Conference teams won the state title in five of the seven seasons that championship games were played during Ellis’s tenure — Woodburn in 2018-19, Philomath in 2021, Newport in 2023 and Stayton in 2025.
“This last year was a case in point of Philomath’s plight,” Ellis said. “We’re one of the smallest schools in the state and in boys soccer, we play in the hardest league. When you finish ranked 10th in the state and don’t make the playoffs, that’s a bit disheartening.”
The Warriors played competitively against the two teams that reached the 4A title match last fall. Over the final three weeks of the season, Philomath lost at North Marion, 2-1, lost to Stayton, 2-1, and tied North Marion, 0-0. Stayton went on to beat North Marion, 1-0, in the championship game.
Ellis said his coaching philosophy has evolved over the years. Young coaches are often driven by personal achievement, he said, while more experienced coaches tend to shift focus away from those external markers.
“I think when you first start coaching, you have all these aspirations to win this and be known for that, and you think that’s how you rate yourself as a coach,” Ellis said. “That’s what you say early in your career. And then I think there’s a point where you let go of that, and you start realizing that winning the big things isn’t really that big of an indicator. I mean, bad coaches win state titles all the time — the best coach doesn’t always win.”
Ellis isn’t leaving coaching entirely. He continues to coach club soccer that his daughters and other younger Philomath players compete in.
The school district started advertising the PHS boys soccer coaching vacancy in mid-January.