ETHS Names New Head Football Coach

At one point in his young coaching career, Miles Osei actually considered leaving a position he already had --- as head football coach at Elk Grove --- to become an assistant coach at Evanston.

Circumstances for what would have been considered an unusual move never really worked out. But now, in one sense, Osei is coming “home” to Evanston.

Osei, who at age 32 already has a reputation as a program builder on and off the football field, was named Friday as the new head coach at ETHS. He will succeed current assistant athletic director Mike Burzawa, who resigned in November after 17 years at the helm.

Osei will join the special education department at the high school. He’s leaving a Kankakee program that he guided to a combined 21-3 record over the past two seasons and included back-to-back appearances in the Illinois High School Association state quarterfinals and back-to-back Southland Athletic Conference championships. The Kays recorded their first unbeaten regular season in school history in his first year as head coach.

Prior to that short tenure in Kankakee, Osei resurrected a floundering Elk Grove program that was 2-25 in the two years prior to his hiring at age 23. He led Elk Grove to the Class 7A state playoffs in 2022, the school’s first postseason appearance since 2013, and coached there for six seasons before moving to Kankakee.

Now he’s ready for another challenge at ETHS, succeeding a coach he almost ended up working for.

“My wife Susie and I lived here for four years when I was at Wheeling (as an assistant coach) and at Elk Grove, and I’ve always felt the tug to move back here because it was something I wanted to do for my kids. This is where I wanted to raise them,” Osei said. “So when the opportunity opened up, I felt it would be great for our family.

“After I finished my student teaching I had an interest in teaching and coaching at Evanston and I talked to Coach Buzz (Burzawa) at one point about that. But it just didn’t work out then.”

Osei’s connection to Evanston actually goes all the way back to when he was a fifth grader living in Arlington Heights. He and one of his best friends were aspiring basketball players who wanted to play against the best competition available, so they joined the FAAM (Fellowship of Afro-American Men) organization and commuted to play hoops here for two and a half years.

He was a two-time All-State selection playing quarterback for Prospect High School, where he was named the District 214 Male Athlete of the Year, and played four years at the University of Illinois while serving as a team captain for the Illini.

“I am thrilled to bring Coach Osei back to the Evanston community,” said ETHS Athletic Director Chris Livatino. “He has a brilliant football mind, with a keen ability to effectively communicate and teach the Xs and Os as well as the important life lessons learned through the sport of football. His core values of courage, fight and sacrifice will help to shape our young men into the disciplined leaders we need on the field, in the classroom, and in our community.”

Osei served a three-year apprenticeship as an assistant at Wheeling after graduating from Illinois, then took over at Elk Grove. “I owe the principal and the AD there a lot for taking a risk and hiring me at such a young age,” he pointed out. “We had to have a mindset shift because Elk Grove was the doormat of the conference (Mid-Suburban East) and we had to foster a belief in the kids that we’d work together to get better and they wouldn’t have to lay down for anyone. That’s tough to do in a program that hasn’t had much success.

“District 214 is a great district, and after six years at Elk Grove I really wasn’t looking for another job. But when Kankakee reached out I knew the opportunity was better from our family standpoint, and after we checked all of the boxes, I thought it was an opportunity to influence as many kids as possible.”

Kankakee was just two years removed from winning a state championship and needed Osei’s presence more off the field than on it.

“There was an extreme amount of talent there, and I think they wanted more accountability and discipline in the program academically,” said Osei. “A lot of the kids who were starters didn’t graduate because after the football season it was just go ahead and do what you want to do. When I first got there we had like 119 Fs (grades) just on the varsity alone, and we got it down to about 8 this year.

“We had to convince the kids that this is bigger than football, and that we’ll get you to college if you want or to a job you want if that’s what you choose. I think kids want to be held accountable and they needed someone to be on them around the clock. I just tried to be present and push them about the opportunities that are out there for you.”

Osei plans to hit the ground running at Evanston. He’ll meet with returning players and staff early this week and will try to take a program that hasn’t qualified for the IHSA playoffs since 2021 to the next level.

“I want to build on what Coach Buzz has already established here,” Osei explained. “I think accountability is something I can bring --- in a positive way --- for the parents, for the coaches, for the players, for the athletic department.

“At the varsity level, the goal is to win. It’s great to have success off the field --- that’s important --- but I want all of the kids to experience success on Friday nights, too.

“If there was a secret recipe for this, then everyone would do it. But I’m definitely excited about trying to make it happen. Honestly, my goal is to make this one of the most respected programs in the state. I just want to enhance what’s been done here in the past and make it my own.”