Wasco football head coach Rick Stewart announced he will be stepping down from his position to battle cancer.

The 50-year-old first-year head coach was diagnosed with leukemia at the beginning of the season in August, but kept the news quiet until Thursday evening.

Stewart gave the news to the Wasco High football team in an emotional team meeting on Thursday. He says he will undergo chemotherapy, and he plans to coach again.

28-year-old Chad Martinez, an assistant coach at Wasco who played college football at Fresno State, will take over coaching duties in an interim role.