November 22, 2024
Sports

Westmont football coach Orszula moves on to build Streamwood program

After five years with Sentinels, Lisle High School grad moves on to bigger school

By JASON ROSSI

File photo – msleditorial@shawmedia.com Mark Orszula's squad posted a 4-5 record in 2011, the program's best finish in his five years as head coach.

WESTMONT – After five seasons at the helm, Mark Orszula has stepped down as Westmont High School’s football coach.

Orszula, a Lisle High School graduate and former assistant football coach there, will take over the football program at Streamwood High School. The move became official in late May, but Orszula said the process of going from Westmont to Streamwood started in the early spring.

“It got announced later, but the wheels started turning in the early spring,” Orszula said. “I saw the job, went in and interviewed, and it went really well.”

While he is excited about the future at Streamwood, leaving Westmont behind wasn’t easy.

“I built a number of relationships with the kids, parents and staff,” he said. “It’s always hard to leave and say goodbye. It’s tough ending those relationships, but I hope I made a positive impact.”

At Streamwood, Orszula switches to a school that has four times the enrollment of Westmont (2,084 from 501), which will go long way to building the Sabres program. Westmont went 11-34 during Orszula’s stint, with a high-water mark of 4-5 in 2011. Streamwood was 13-33 during the same five-year stretch and made the playoffs in 2011, when it finished with a 6-4 record.

“It’s a larger school with larger numbers, and that’s going to help us build a program and help us get to the playoffs. That’s the goal,” Orszula said. “At Westmont, we had a lot of kids going both ways. The goal at Streamwood is to have 22 starters, 11 on offense and 11 on defense, plus special teams starters.

“It’s going to be a little different [at Streamwood], but the overall philosophy is really going to be the same. It just comes down to coaching football.”