Mike Vance resigned as the head football coach at Cheverus, the school announced on Tuesday. Vance spent 18 seasons with the program, including the last 10 as its head coach. Brianna Soukup/Staff Photographer
Mike Vance has resigned as Cheverus High’s head football coach after an eight-season stint that included an undefeated run to the 2021 eight-man Large School football championship.
The school announced Vance’s departure in a press release on Tuesday.
“Today, I announce my resignation from Cheverus football,” Vance said in the release. “I am extremely grateful for my 18 years in this community, and now it’s time for change. These years have been marked by a commitment to excellence from hundreds of high-character young men. We built strong relationships and shared the thrill of this great game together. I will cherish the memories we made.”
Vance, 53, a Scarborough resident, was an assistant at Cheverus for 10 seasons, serving as defensive coordinator and junior varsity coach, helping the team win Class A titles in 2010 and 2011. In May 2016 he was hired to replace his mentor John Wolfgram as Cheverus’ head coach. A 1988 graduate of South Portland High, Vance played for Wolfgram at South Portland and got his coaching start as an assistant with Wolfgram at South Portland.
Prior to joining Wolfgram’s staff at Cheverus, Vance was an assistant coach at Gorham and Scarborough.
Vance declined further comment. In a text he said the school’s press release said all he wanted to say. In the release, Vance thanked former Cheverus Athletic Director Gary Hoyt, current AD Amy Ashley and Dean of Students Dan Costigan specifically and the school’s faculty and staff.
“Thank you to our outstanding coaching staff for their efforts in helping to mold our young men,” Vance added. “Most importantly, I want to thank all of our players and their families from 2006 to 2023. You made Cheverus football special.”
During Vance’s tenure as head coach, the private Catholic school played in four different divisions. Vance’s teams went 39-27 overall, made the playoffs each season, and won at least a first-round playoff game in five of the seven years when there was a postseason.
The Stags stayed in Class A through the 2018 season, then moved to Class B for 2019. After going 5-5 in 2019, with 12 seniors on a 31-player roster, Cheverus announced it would move to eight-man in February of 2020, about one month before the coronavirus pandemic hit. The 2020 season of tackle football was cancelled statewide. Cheverus went 8-0 in the eight-man ranks in 2021, finishing the season by not allowing a point over the final 22 quarters, including a 56-0 win in the state final against Waterville.
In 2022, Cheverus returned to 11-man football and moved into Class C South where it has gone 5-3 (6-4 overall) and 6-2 (6-3) the past two seasons.
“On behalf of everyone at Cheverus High School, I want to thank Coach Vance for his commitment to the Cheverus football program,” Ashley said in the release. “He has been an integral part of this program for nearly two decades … and he will be greatly missed.”
Ashley praised Vance for being a “terrific mentor” to his players while demanding excellence in the classroom as well as the field and devoting “every minute each fall,” to the football program.
“I know that his family will be thrilled to have him back,” Ashley added.
Vance and his wife Mercedes have two daughters, Abigail and Grace who are in ninth and seventh grade, respectively.
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