Jerry Snodgrass-2025

OHSAA Administrator

Jerry Snodgrass Bio

Inducted as an Athletic Administrator, Jerry Snodgrass spent his entire 48-year career teaching, coaching and administrating high school athletics.  An Upper Sandusky native he attended the University of Tampa before graduating from Bowling Green State University in 1977 and continued on receiving his Masters Degree in Guidance and Counseling from the University of Dayton.

Jerry’s professional career began in the Defiance City Schools as an assistant coach in football, basketball and baseball. In 1980, he embarked on his first head basketball coaching position at Ridgedale High School and teaching high school sciences and coaching junior high football.

With a strong desire to become an athletic administrator, Jerry accepted a position in the Bryan City Schools in 1982 as an assistant athletic director while also continuing his football coaching at the junior high level. Jerry accepted a position as assistant varsity basketball coach at Findlay High School and return working under his first mentor, Roger Renz. Upon the untimely passing of Coach Renz in 1991, Jerry was hired as the head basketball coach at Findlay High School while also accepting the Athletic Director position 1 year later. While several former players and assistant coaches have gone on to their own Hall of Fame careers, Jerry has always credited them with his coaching and administrative success.

While serving as Findlay’s Athletic Director Jerry was also elected to the NW District Athletic Board with duties conducting tournaments in the NW District.  He was elected to serve on the OHSAA’s Board of Control in 2005 and served as the Board’s President in 2006 before being hired in 2008 to fill the spot of John Dickerson.  Jerry began a 10-year career as an Assistant Commissioner at the OHSAA serving as the Liaison to Ohio’s athletic directors and administrating 13 sports including baseball. He started weekly communications with school coaches & administrators such as the “This Week in Baseball” that also included weekly updates, reminders and rule interpretations from umpires. Jerry served on the NFHS Coach Education Committee and implemented several student-oriented programs that received national recognition.

In 2018, Jerry was hired to lead the Ohio HS Athletic Association as its Executive Director. Though his tenure was cut short in 2020, he made significant administrative contributions that included re-negotiating several key contracts and creating partnerships still in place for member schools today while making significant cutbacks to increase efficiency of the organization. Jerry effectively dealt with the challenges that presented themselves during the Covid pandemic that began in March of 2020 that included the unfortunate shutdown of winter tournaments and the spring sports seasons of 2020.

He has served in several roles since his years at the OHSAA, including a Vice-President role with Final Forms and currently teaches in the Master’s Program at Ohio University teaching Leadership and Ethics and an Academic Success Coach at Terra State Community College.  He received recognition as an honorary member of the Ohio Athletic Trainers Association for his support and work with athletic trainers in the state.

Over the course of his career, Jerry has been inducted into 6 Halls of Fame and received recognition as an honorary member of the Ohio Athletic Trainers Association for his support and work with athletic trainers in the state and serves as a board member for a non-profit organization that serves youth across the state.

Jerry lives in Findlay along with his wife of 45 years (Barbara) and is the proud father of daughter Katie (husband Mike), a BGSU graduate and son Mark, a 2019 ODU graduate who unexpectedly passed away in the summer of 2019. Jerry and Barb have 3 grandchildren attending school in the Perrysburg District.