Former Hawks coaches Mora and Beake to help at Bellevue

Chris Beake wanted to share what he has learned during his career in the NFL.

So did Jim Mora, the Seahawks' coach last year, whom Beake worked for before Mora and his staff lost their jobs after the season.

Beake figured becoming Bellevue High School's defensive coordinator was the perfect opportunity to do just that. Mora's role with the Wolverines has yet to be determined.

"It's very exciting, because Bellevue is a national program," Beake said. "It's a great opportunity for me personally just to kind of come and do some things I've learned over my career on defense and implement them and run things myself."

Bellevue coach Butch Goncharoff confirmed Saturday that Beake would replace Wes Warren, who left to become the linebackers coach, special-teams coordinator and recruiting coordinator at the University of Montana Western. Beake joins a program that has won seven state championships in nine years.

"I interviewed a lot of guys," Goncharoff said. "I just liked him. I liked him as a person. I think he gets it and he's not just all about football, he's about developing kids. There's just something about him that clicked with us."

Beake worked as an assistant on offense and special teams last season under Mora. Before joining Seattle's coaching staff, he coached linebackers for the Falcons from 2004-06 and spent six seasons with the 49ers.

"It's kind of funny how similar things really are," Beake said. "In the NFL the guys are just older, but they're still football players. Physically, obviously, there are not a lot of limitations in the NFL and I think that maybe that's one thing, just that they're younger athletes. Other than that, they're really the same people. They're football players. They want to learn, they want to get better."

Goncharoff is also happy to be getting Mora's expertise.

"Jim will be involved," Goncharoff said. "I don't know in what capacity yet. It's great. He's an outstanding guy in whatever capacity we get him, even if it's only for spring ball or summer. It's great to have him around. He's a great resource for us."

Beake said he is looking forward to joining a program with the sustained run of success the Wolverines have experienced under Goncharoff.

"It's an opportunity for me to grow as a young coach and do the things I've learned over the years," Beake said. "I've done a lot of things in the NFL, but I've never done it where you put in a defense, and you teach it, and you run it and you call it. That's exciting for me."

In high-school football, change happens every year. Players graduate and coaches move on, but Goncharoff wants to ensure his team remains one of the elite programs in the state.

"We've definitely gone through some change," Goncharoff said. "There will be a lot of people changing spots. When you have success you definitely can become complacent. We want to change and continue to get better, so it's not negative, it's positive. It is nice to have it done."