After two state championships, Rick Finotti is leaving St. Edward High School for the University of Michigan.
The Lakewood, Ohio school announced Friday that Finotti is leaving the Eagles, the 2014 Ohio Division 1 champs, to become Jim Harbaugh‘s Director of Football Operations.
Last month, Harbaugh hired Chris Partridge, the former Paramus Catholic (New Jersey) head coach in the program’s recruiting department.
Below is the the school’s official announcement about Finotti’s resignation.
St. Edward High School announced today that Head Football Coach Rick Finotti has accepted an offer from the University of Michigan to become the football program’s Director of Operations.
“This happened very quickly over the past week,” said Finotti. “It’s been a privilege to be part of the St. Edward Community, to coach incredibly hard working young men, and to help them achieve their goals. It is a difficult decision to leave St. Edward, but this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
Finotti was named St. Edward Head Coach in 2009 and led the team to the school’s first state football title in 2010. The team added a second state title this past season. Finotti was 62-15 as head coach, and under his direction the St. Edward Football program elevated its national profile and annually played one of the toughest schedules in the country.
“If I am able to leave any legacy at St. Edward High School, it’s that I worked my hardest to contribute to a culture of excellence, assisted in the spiritual, academic and physical development of my players, and am handing off a program that will achieve at the highest level for years to come,” added Finotti.
St. Edward will begin an immediate search for Finotti’s replacement. Coordinators Pete Pappas and Dan Scanlon will manage the day-to-day operations of the team until a new head coach is named.
“I want to thank Coach Finotti for bringing our storied football tradition to its highest point to date, making it the premier coaching position in the state of Ohio,” said St. Edward President Jim Kubacki. “We look forward to naming a new coach who will carry forth the foundation of success that Coach Finotti and his staff have built at St. Edward. We all wish him the best of luck with this new opportunity.”
[subscribe2]
