Football: Brian Vegliando steps down as Wallkill head coach, former player to take over
Wallkill football coach Brian Vegliando has stepped down from his position.
"It was just time," he said. "I’ve been doing this for a long time, this is my second stint as head coach and four years in and we’ve done a lot of good work over the last couple of years. But it’s time to spend time with my family.
"I have two kids who are getting older, my oldest son is in high school now," he added. "So I want to chase them around and be around them a little bit more. I couldn’t put in the time that’s needed to run the football program. I know it’s a year-round thing and a seven day a week job, 365 days a year. I didn’t think it was fair to the program to not be able to put in that time and still be the head coach, so it was just time.”
Vegliando won 50 games for the program, along with three division titles and one sectional championship.
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Vegliando is a Wallkill High School alumni and received his first job out of college teaching at the school and has been there ever since. Vegliando started coaching when he started teaching back in the 2003-04 school year and was the head coach starting in the 2009 season. From there, he was the head coach for five years. After stepping away for a few years, he returned as an assistant in 2017 and has been at the helm the last four seasons.
Wallkill assistant coach and offensive coordinator Joe Pillitteri will be taking over, after the decision was approved at a board meeting on Wednesday, Vegliando said. Pillitteri was quarterback on Vegliando's 2013 team and holds the Section 9 record for passing yards in a season.
“I’m absolutely honored to be given the title of the head varsity football coach at Wallkill," Pillitteri said. "I’m very, very thankful to our board of education and our administration and really the whole school community for putting this trust into me. It’s really a dream come true for me. This is something I’ve thought about for a long time. When I stopped playing at Wallkill, I knew I wanted to get involved as a coach again. To enter this role, it’s absolutely amazing and I’m thrilled.”
Vegliando said he is really excited for Pillitteri and knows he's going to do a great job.
"I knew he was a great football player and a great football mind back when he was a player," he said. "We tailored our offense around him because of that. Since he’s been back as a teacher and a coach as a district, I just saw the potential in him to be the head coach. He’s got a great football mind, he’s really organized and he’s got a great plan for how to run a program. He has great relationships with the student athletes and I’m really excited for him to see where he takes this.”
Wallkill athletic director Mike Redmond called Vegliando "the embodiment of everything that is Wallkill" who has represented the program so well.
"We know that Coach Pillitteri is going to continue to honor the traditions that have been set by Coach Vegliando," Redmond added. "We just know that our student athletes are going to continue to be in the best hands they could possibly be in."
Quarterback Mat Shea said it was definitely a little surprising when he heard the news.
"I can’t say enough good things about coach Vegliando," Shea said. "His coaching skills matched with the way he’s able to connect with players is special. He done so much for the program and Wallkill is very much grateful for that. The program is still in great hands with Coach Pilitteri taking over."
MKramer1@th-record.com
Twitter: @MKramerTHR
This article originally appeared on Times Herald-Record: Section 9 football: Vegliando steps down as Wallkill coach
