Northwestern hires veteran Sharpsville assistant Bill Henwood as next football coach
Why now?
Bill Henwood knew that question was an inevitable one from Northwestern School District officials during his job interview.
Henwood applied to succeed Mark Brooks as the Wildcats' next football coach. His concern wasn't so much about his age, 61, but that he had zero experience leading a team.
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While true, Henwood was confident he possessed the next best thing.
Specifically, 25 seasons working his way up from the feeder system to the varsity staff for Sharpsville's football team.
A program Paul Piccirilli led with 229 wins over his 28 seasons as the Blue Devils' coach.
“Coach Piccirilli taught me a lot in the years I was with his program,” Henwood said. “I finally felt I'd learned enough that I could lead a program myself. I applied for (Northwestern's) vacancy, and here I am.”
While Henwood has never been a head coach, he does have leadership experience away from the gridiron. The 1979 Haverford High School graduate is an executive vice president for Vantage Holding Company in Meadville.
Serving in various capacities for Sharpsville's football program also allowed Henwood up-close views when his sons competed there.
Jake, Nick, Luke, Ben and Danny Henwood all suited up for the Blue Devils at some point over their father's quarter-century tenure as an assistant or coordinator.
“It was phenomenal watching them grow from the sidelines,” Henwood said. “No words can describe what that meant to me. Memories forever.”
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Henwood planned to meet with Northwestern's returning football players by the end of this week, and then start work on assembling a staff.
Those coaches will take over a team that qualified for the 2022 District 10 Class 2A playoffs. The Wildcats were eliminated in the first round with a 6-5 record.
Henwood's last coaching appearance with Sharpsville was a 26-0 loss to Farrell in the D-10 championship.
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Warren with lone vacancy
Northwestern's decision to hire Henwood left Warren as the district's lone football program currently minus a coach.
Mark Morelli resigned after six seasons in charge of the Dragons. He formerly held that same role for 11 years at District 9 Ridgway.
Contact Mike Copper at mcopper@timesnews.com. Follow him on Twitter @ETNcopper.
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This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Northwestern hires Bill Henwood as next football coach
