Bigica resigned following a historic 2023 season that included winning the CCAC title for the first time, along with winning the program’s first playoff game. But the 2023 season was also mired in controversy in part due to an investigation concluding he and former defensive coordinator P.J. Gibbs had improper contact with a Lely player’s mother which resulted in a six-game suspension for Bigica and a two-game suspension for Gibbs. Both coaches were allowed to work with the team at practice during the week but were suspended from game nights.

As Bigica looks to build his staff, he’ll have a longtime head coach alongside him in Rich Dombroski, who most recently was an assistant at Barron Collier before serving as Bonita Springs’ founding coach in the late 2010s.

“He brings a lot to the table,” Bigica said. “He’s got knowledge upon knowledge and has been coaching a lot longer than I have. The knowledge he brings is great, and he cares about kids and wants to be here… I love having ex-head coaches on staff. They understand what the job is. They’ll pick up slacking areas that other people may not understand. They understand how the game is played and what the job entails. They help make my life easier, and I think Rich is going to be very crucial into helping us become better.”

The Titans will get underway with a spring game on May 21, taking on another team that’s been building from the ground up in Aubrey Rogers. It’ll be a young group at Golden Gate, with over 50 freshmen and sophomores that’ll have to get acclimated to playing against upperclassmen.