Santoro ready to rebuild Perkins football

PERKINS TWP. -- The Perkins Local School District school board unanimously approved the hiring of Jalen Santoro as the Pirates' next head football coach at its meeting Tuesday night. Santoro, dressed in a sharp suit and tie, said a few words at the podium and notified the capacity crowd at Perkins High School that he had a 102-degree fever the last couple of days and wasn't feeling real chipper. Football coaches are supposed to be tough, right? Santoro is only 25, but the maturity of the 2013 Bellevue High graduate impressed superintendent Todd Boggs, who made the recommendation to the board. "We were all young at one time as coaches and teachers," Boggs said. "We will hear that, but that's not a detractor in our eyes. More importantly he's tremendous in building positive, solid relationships. His performance speaks for itself. Those were factors that really interested us." Santoro, who has been the wide receivers coach at Bellevue the past two years, knows he'll hear the age question many times. He is prepared. "It's a trend not only in high school but the NFL and the college level as well," he said. "People are being successful at a young age. The way I look at it, if you get a guy younger who is successful, you're getting him for more time in the same program. It's obviously my duty to prove those people wrong." Boggs, who was a head football coach in the Columbus area earlier in his career, said Santoro stood out during the interview process. "All of the candidates were strong and we're really honored they had an interest in us," Boggs said. "Jalen came in as a young fellow and he was technically sound. The peripherals and the support staff that he had were impressive as well." Boggs also thanked former coach Jason Ziegler, who stepped down in early January after 10 years as head coach. The Pirates went to the playoffs four straight seasons, from 2012-15, but have struggled in recent years. "He's phenomenal for kids. He did a fantastic job," Boggs said of Ziegler. "Coach Santoro will pick up where he left off. It's about opportunities for kids within a well-defined system; we think he'll generate that enthusiasm in our community. He'll attract coaches and players and we're excited about that." Santoro plans to bring aboard three assistants from Bellevue -- Zach Coe, Evan Englehart and Luke Lyden -- and also add old teammate Trent Stammen to his staff. Longtime Perkins fans might have alarming flashbacks at the sight, considering Santoro hooked up with Stammen on a last-second touchdown pass to beat Perkins 28-27 in a second-round playoff game in 2012. "I have seen some footage of it," Boggs said. "It was brought to my attention." Santoro teaches sixth-grade social studies at Bellevue. Boggs said he's "hopeful" that the Pirates' new coach will land a job at Perkins. The new coach met a few Pirates at the board meeting and will get to know more players and a meet-and-greet on Monday. He said his staff is looking forward to working with the players in the weight room and installing a system. "Perkins has always had athletes. I know they have some talent, whether it's speed, size," Santoro said. "We have to put the speed and size together and instill a little more discipline. Disciplined teams win football games. "It's a big opportunity for someone my age, but I feel with the supporting cast, the administration and coaches we'll be up to the task." School board member Ted Kastor, who was part of the search committee, lauded the hire and, after going through several interviews, talked about the hours coaches put in for minimal pay. "It made me appreciate these people who coach our student-athletes," Kastor said. "The head coach stipend is somewhere in the range of $7,000. When we interviewed these coaches, we said, 'Take us through a normal Monday through Sunday football week.' They work seven days a week and all this offseason. "Coming from a business community, I'm trying to do the math. Truly, it's a labor of love, passion and commitment, love of the game. Just great admiration for coaches who step forward to do this task." Santoro, who led Bellevue to the 2012 Division III state championship game as a quarterback before playing football at Tiffin University, might not feel a lot of love when he takes his Pirates to Bellevue on Oct. 9 next season. He says he'll try to keep his emotions in check when he arrives as a visitor. "Bellevue is where I was born and raised. I have no hard feelings toward anyone there," he said. "I'm going to treat that game like any other one. Obviously there will be a little more emotion for those involved. I'm trying to keep my emotion out of that type of deal. "I think it'll be fun going back there to play."