Avon Lake Hires New Head Football Coach

AVON LAKE, OH - The Avon Lake Shoremen have a new head football coach. Matt Kostelnik, a 31-year-old, 2004 graduate of the school, will take over on the sidelines for the 2017-2018 season. He replaces Dave Dlugosz as head coach. Kostelnik's hiring is still pending on the Board of Education's approval.

Kostelnik has been an assistant coach with the program for the past two years. Prior to that, he served as an assistant coach at Beachwood High School. He was also a recruiter and defensive coordinator for Notre Dame College, and an assistant coach at Mount Union University. He is also a World History and Contemporary Social Issues teacher for the school.

“We are very excited to have Matt as our new head coach,” said Nori Okuma, Avon Lake High School athletic director. “He brings a diverse experience to the position that will serve him well as he transitions into his first head coaching role. His connections to the community and school are valuable. As a teacher at the high school, he is already familiar with the students and the culture at Avon Lake. Our football program is steeped in tradition and Matt has been a part of that. He played on the 2003 State Championship football team at Avon Lake. We are grateful we found a great candidate for our next head coach right in our own backyard.”

The school says that during the interview process, Kostelnik distinguished himself by discussing the role football can play in molding boys into men and teaching life skills, including self-discipline, toughness, and teamwork.

“We are going to be player driven on both sides of the ball,” said Kostelnik in a statement. “While our core offense will be the same, we will design plays that fit the strengths of our players. We had a great quarterback and great wide receivers last year so you saw us pass the ball a lot. We will evaluate our players this season and play to their strengths. I also plan to be a face around the community. Coach Dlugosz was great about getting coaches involved in the community and going to youth football practices. I want to continue to build our football program from the youth leagues on up to high school.”

The Shoremen went 7-4 last season and knocked off rival Avon in the state playoffs.

Photo from Avon Lake Schools