Late coaching departures leave several Big Central schools looking for new football coaches

Ridge, Linden, AL Johnson, New Brunswick, Dunellen and now St. Thomas Aquinas. Although that last one didn’t last long.

Most high school football coaches who decide to leave – or aren’t brought back – depart in December or January, with new mentors coming on board in January, February or even March.

But at one point this week, a half-dozen schools are in various stages of looking for head football coaches and it’s already early May.

The reasons are as wide and varied as the type of schools still searching for new football leadership. Here’s a closer look at each:

St. Thomas Aquinas: The latest coach to step down was Jonathan Germano, who came down from Bergen Catholic to replace Tarig Holman, who was not brought back by the school after an unprecedented run in three seasons, going 27-6. But while school principal Harry Ziegler said in a Wednesday message to the school community obtained by Central Jersey Sports Radio that a new head coach would be named “in the coming days,” they wasted no time, announcing the hiring of Shamir Bearfield from St. Peter’s Prep less than 24 hours later. Read that story – and hear our one-on-one interview – here.

New Brunswick: Steve Gluchowski told the school back in December he wouldn’t be coming back for a third season. The Zebras went 0-18 in his two campaigns, plagued mainly by dwindling numbers – from about 40 at the start of each season to fewer than two dozen by the time it was all over. New Brunswick has lost 23 straight games, dating back to 2022, and the search there continues.

Linden: Al Chiola stepped down in March from the Tiger program, and his resignation was accepted by the Board of Education at its April 29th meeting. He’ll likely spend some time watching his son Tyler, who will be a senior this season, but he has no plans to coach this season. Chiola was 44-49-1 in ten seasons with Linden, going 4-6 last season after a 6-3-1 campaign in 2023. Listen to our one-on-one interview here.

Dunellen: Dave DeNapoli has had a long career at Dunellen, and while he’ll remain as Athletic Director, he retired from coaching the Destroyer football program last month after 29 years as the program’s mentor. He finishes his career with a record of 133-172-1 over that time span. He took the reins in August 1996, at the age of 39, and followed a legend in his own right, Pio Pennisi, who brought the school a Central Jersey Group 1 championship in 1993 and had just stepped down to become vice-principal at the high school. He played quarterback for Dunellen, graduating in 1975, and has lived in town all his life. The search for a successor is ongoing.

Ridge: Andy West stepped down earlier this spring after five seasons at the helm of the Red Devil program earlier this spring. Coming off back-to-back 8-2 seasons, West’s went 6-2 in his initial campaign in 2020 – while many programs struggled during the COVID-shortened season – then went 7-3 each of the next two seasons, and 8-2 each of the past two. He finishes 36-12, with a .750 winning percentage, and never missed the state playoffs in four seasons. (There were no state playoffs in 2020 due to COVID.) We’re hearing a new coach may be named shortly.

AL Johnson: Anthony DelConte is out after eleven seasons leading the Crusaders, the last three of which were among their best, winning six games each in 2022 and 2023, then going 7-2 last season. DelConte’s best season was an 8-3 campaign in 2017, and he went 56-48 during his tenure there. No word yet on a replacement. School officials say the job posting closes shortly, and the goal is to have a new coach approved by the Board of Education at its next meeting later this month.