Walnut's new football coach is Joe Goyeneche, who won CIF-SS title in 2023
Walnut's new football coach is Joe Goyeneche, who had success with one of the top programs in Ventura County.
Goyeneche stunned many in the Ventura County football community when he turned in his resignation at St. Bonaventure in May of 2025 to pursue other opportunities.
Goyeneche, who was a ball boy as a kid at St. Bonaventure, spent several years as an assistant coach at his alma mater before being named the head coach. He led the program for five seasons and compiled a 41-15 overall record through the 2024 season.
In 2023 he led St. Bonaventure to the CIF Southern Section Division 3 championship and went on to reach the CIF State Division 1-A final.
When he resigned, Goyeneche's said that he wanted to "fully explore new opportunities in the best interest of my coaching and professional future."
This past season Goyeneche served as an assistant coach at Bishop Diego in Santa Barbara.
The opportunity he was looking for led him to the San Gabriel Valley. He will take over a Walnut program that had some success under former coach Eric Peralta. The program recently competed in double digit playoff divisions and struggled the past two seasons, finishing with 4-6 records both times and missing the playoffs.
Goyeneche said he left St. Bonaventure because it was all he ever knew and he was looking for more job security, something a public school could offer with a teaching position.
"I believe everything happens for a reason," Goyeneche said. "I loved my time at St. Bonaventure. I was an alum of the school. I was able to have success. But I was turning 40 and was curious how it would look somewhere else."
Goyeneche was at Walnut on Monday to meet with staff and players. He said he hopes to move nearby and get started.
Goyeneche said he understands he is inheriting somewhat of a rebuilding project, but he believes in himself and likes the support the program is getting from principal Jamie Norell and athletic director Valerie Varela.
"It was fun taking a step back and being an assistant this past season, but I like running the ship and I think I know how to get things done," Goyeneche said. "I know Walnut is not the destination spot of other schools like Bishop Amat, Damien and Charter Oak down the road. But I am confident in myself and the product that I bring. Eventually, once people learn about me and the program we're going to have, we can grow into the future and be something to be proud of. I'm ready to get to work."
Many people curious what direction the Walnut football program would go after veteran coach Peralta announced his retirement at the end of the 2025 season.
Peralta was an assistant coach for the Mustangs since 2002 before he became the head coach in 2017. Peralta led the Mustangs to the CIF-SS Division 11 championship in 2022 and to the Division 13 finals in 2023.
Naming Goyeneche head coach should ease concerns among the Mustangs' faithful. It was a splashy hire by Varela, the school's second-year athletic director.
"Coach Goyeneche emerged from a highly competitive pool of candidates, bringing an impressive resume that includes head coaching experience as well as leadership roles as both an offensive and defensive coordinator at St. Bonaventure and Bishop Diego," Varela said. "His proven ability to build successful programs and develop student-athletes immediately stood out to the hiring committee."
Copyright 2026 Tribune Content Agency. All Rights Reserved.