Providence’s Coglianese decides fall season will be his last

NEW LENOX — In the fall, Mark Coglianese will begin his 35th year at Providence Catholic High School.

And while he isn’t planning on it being his last year with the Celtics, he is planning on it being the last season where he will lead the Providence football program into battle, as he will retire as head coach at the conclusion of the upcoming fall season.

“The time commitment is starting to get a little tough. I’m also the head track coach; those two seasons are almost back to back. You’ve got the summers with those commitments, as well, so I just think it is time to let someone take it over,” Coglianese said. “I’m still going to be coaching track here. I’m still going to be teaching here. I’m still going to be a big part of Providence.”

Coglianese took over at Providence in 2006 after longtime Celtics coach Matt Senffner stepped down. Before the head coaching job, Coglianese served as an assistant to Senffner, largely as the program’s defensive coordinator. He has been a part of all nine state championships the program has amassed – as the head coach in 2014 and as an assistant in the other eight title runs under Senffner. Coglianese also guided Providence to a state runner-up trophy in 2009.

“I’ve been blessed to be here at Providence going into my 35th year. We’ve had an outstanding run during my time here, during my time under coach Senffner, and I am fortunate to be a part of, me personally, nine state championships, one as a head coach and eight as an assistant as the defensive coordinator,” Coglianese said.

Coglianese wasn’t sure exactly when he wanted to depart the program, but did not want to leave the program in a bad spot, electing to take on one more season that hopefully will be completed in a normal fashion after the shortened spring season was limited to only six games without a postseason.

“The whole COVID season was rough on everybody: kids, coaches, the administration,” Coglianese said. “It was a tough six weeks, but for the most part our six weeks turned out pretty well. And I think it would have been tough if I would have just left it then and there at the end of May, heading into the summer trying to find someone, and that was part of it. I just wanted to finish out on a normal season. I felt like I owed it to the kids that are here and the kids that we brought in to not leave so quick.”

Providence finished the shortened season with a 4-2 record, which leaves Coglianese with a 103-64 career mark going into his final season at the helm. The Celtics were playoff-bound in 11 of the 14 seasons in which the postseason was an option.

Coglianese doesn’t rule out the possibility that he might explore a return to the sidelines at some point as an assistant, but for now is looking forward to some of the extra free time this decision should provide.

“Maybe down the road, maybe I’d look into being an assistant,” Coglianese said. “But for right now, I’m going to take a year away and just coach track and teach my classes and see how that goes. I’m a grandfather now and I’ve got a couple of grandkids and I’m looking forward to spending a little more time with the family.”

Coglianese doesn’t know who will take the reins after his departure from the program. There’s no current plan to groom a current member of the program to take his place, but he also didn’t dismiss the possibility that may develop. In any case, whoever takes the job ultimately will be just the third head coach in Providence history since the program’s institution in 1968.

“I don’t know. I’ve talked with Doug Ternik, our [athletic director], and we decided that I’d go one more year,” Coglianese said. “I know they were going to start looking. Right now, we have two in-house guys and, honestly, I’m not sure how interested they might be. And I’m sure that Doug wants to see who else might be interested.”