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The former Armada grid coach and teacher was hired last week by the Brown City school board to replace Bob McClintic as varsity football coach.

Tony Burton, BC athletic director, said seven people applied for the position and the athletic committee interviewed four. Burton said the committee liked that Zebelian was not only head coach in the past, but had also coached at all levels of football, not just varsity.

"He has varsity experience. That's one of things we were looking at as a committee," said Burton. "The second thing was overall coaching experience, and he fit those. Plus, he's from the Blue Water Area and he knows this area well."

Zebelian, who has been more involved in his cattle farm the last few years, retired as a teacher of 26 years and also as the Tigers varsity coach in 2001-02. His father was a dairy farmer in the Armada area.

After seven years with the Armada varsity, and with a sophomore son that would move up next season, Zebelian figured it would be the right time to get away from coaching.

"I didn't think that I should coach, or teach, my own son," said Zebelian, now 60. "But I see coaches like Tony Burton (varsity boys basketball at BC) and see how that has worked with him, and now I think it was a mistake (to retire)."

Zebelian, like his cattle, is locally grown. He graduated from Armada High School in 1966, played three years of football at Anderson College (Ind.), and graduated from there in 1971.