After 10 years, the pull of home became too great for Kevin Schwedler to ignore. The Bullock Creek graduate announced he will leave his job as the Frankenmuth athletic director after the school year. Schwedler, 39, will take the job as assistant principal and athletic director at Midland Dow, replacing the retiring John Streeter. “I still live in Midland, and that was a huge factor in the decision,” Schwedler said. “For 10 years, I’ve had about an hour drive one way. There were some long nights, but that’s for any athletic director. “But shortening the commute time, being able to see more of my family … that was a big factor.” Schwedler played baseball at Bullock Creek and Saginaw Valley State University, graduating from SVSU in 2009 and earning his master’s degree from Central Michigan University in 2014. Frankenmuth hired Schwedler in 2015. “They took a chance on me, and it’s been a great run,” Schwedler said. “Frankenmuth is a place that strives to do things the right way. That’s why I took the job. “It’s a great community. The passion and support for students and athletes is second to none. Leaving is bittersweet. It’s great that I get to be closer to home, but I’m leaving a place where I’ll have relationships and memories that will last a lifetime.” Schwedler, however, sees the same opportunities at Midland Dow. “It’s a great place for academics and athletics,” Schwedler said. “Through the process, I’ve had great communication with Midland school administrators.” During Schwedler’s tenure at Frankenmuth, the athletic program saw plenty of success and also saw massive renovations and improvements to its facilities. “The football complex, soccer complex, weight room, gym floor, stadium seating at baseball and softball, batting cages, watching the wrestling program grow from a club team … all those projects I was a part of,” Schwedler said. “That’s a fingerprint I’ll be leaving behind. “I was also fortunate to see the student-athlete experiences our athletes were able to go through with tournament runs. They were able to experience going to MIS (Michigan International Speedway) for cross country, Breslin Center for basketball and Ford Field for football.” Schwedler won’t exactly be a stranger after the move. Although they are in different conferences and divisions – Dow in the Saginaw Valley League and Frankenmuth in the Tri-Valley Conference – they compete against each other in several sports. “When I was looking at the schedule, that was one of the intriguing parts of heading to Dow,” Schwedler said. “Other than football and a few other sports, we play a lot of the same teams and a similar schedule. Frankenmuth plays a lot of SVL non-conference games … baseball against Dow, girls basketball against Dow. Golf and tennis, we’re kind of in the same circle, just in a different town. “I’m looking forward to the move, but it’s still difficult because of the relationships I’ve made in Frankenmuth. There are a lot of good memories.” If you would like your local high school sports news delivered free to your inbox daily, click here and sign up for one of our local high school sports newsletters. Love reading about local sports? Don’t miss any of the excitement from the season ahead. Purchase your subscription now and get full access to every story on MLive!