UPDATE: Mark Wojciechowski Named New Football Coach at Sachem High School East

The wait is over, Mark Wojciechowski has been named the new head football coach at Sachem High School East.

Wojciechowski, who was approved for the position during Wednesday's Sachem Central School District Board of Education work session, takes over from , who was removed from the position in early December.

A former Hansen Award winner from 1985 as the best football player in Suffolk County while at Sachem, Wojciechowski is the dean at Sachem High School North and has been an assistant coach in the district for over 15 years, including most recently associate head coach at East.

Numerous coaches and supporters from the school district were present at the board meeting to support Wojciechowski and his new position.

“Everything I went through under Fred [Fusaro], with Dave [Falco], really prepared me for the opportunity,” he said. “This is a full-time job, 24/7. It’s always in your head. I didn’t think I’d be this excited at first, but the night before the board meeting I couldn’t sleep. This is a great opportunity and I’m grateful for it.”

Wojciechowski thought Fusaro would be coaching at Sachem forever, so being a head coach wasn’t a life goal by any means. But now that he’s tasked with turning around a team that went 1-15 the last two seasons, he’s anxious for a turn at the whip. He’ll meet with the players on Friday for the first time as the head coach.

“A lot of people think there is one big goal in mind, like let’s win a Long Island championship,” he said. “It’s never that. It’s all about the journey. It’s about each day getting better.”

What kind of message will he send on Friday?

“I’m not asking you to be perfect, I’m asking you to be the best person you can possibly be,” he said. “Work as hard as you can possibly work. It sounds simple, but in life those are hard things to do all the time.”

As for the staff, he said he’ll be making decisions shortly, but wants to surround himself, "with great guys, character guys who are role models for the kids,” said Wojciechowski. “It’ll be a work in progress. Now that I’ve been appointed I will sit down seriously with everyone who wants to contribute and see how much of a commitment they want to give.”

“At this time, discussions are on-going regarding the new coaching staff and a meeting will be called shortly with the players to introduce them to the new staff and hear their expectations for the upcoming season,” added Sachem athletic director Pete Blieberg.

There is almost no doubt that Sachem East will grab the No. 14 seed in Division I for 2011. It’s a far cry from the glory days Wojciechowski experienced as a stud lineman at Sachem under Fusaro, but everyone from district administrators to longtime Sachem football supporters are in agreement that the man they call “Woj” is right man for the job.

“I am very pleased with this appointment because it provides the program with someone who is home grown, understands the Sachem philosophy and who has earned the respect of the football community not only in Sachem but across Suffolk County football,” said Blieberg. “I am very excited about the new direction this program will be headed. I want to thank coach Harvey for everything he did for the student-athletes within the program during his tenure where he always handled himself as a complete gentleman. I am confident that coach Woj will now take the program to new heights.”

Woj and Falco both broke into high school coaching under Fusaro, a man many credit as their second father. The title couldn’t have become any clearer for Woj as he spoke to Fusaro Thursday. His father Julian passed away recently at the age of 90 and Fusaro can fill the gap of a proud figure in his life.

“I could write a book about Woj, but the most impressive thing about him is his sense of loyalty to the Sachem community and to the Sachem football family,” Fusaro said. “He is a strong leader who has an expression, ‘Do the right thing.’ I have no doubts that Woj is the right man to get the job done at Sachem East.”

“You can hear how proud he is,” Woj added, “and it makes me feel good. With my father not being here, there is a little piece missing. Not that he doesn’t know, but for me and him not being here to see it, Fred makes the hurt a little less. It makes me feel better about it. I want to make him proud.”

For Falco, his counterpart at North, he also believes the district has made a great choice.

“He is an excellent coach and role model who has a passion for Sachem,” Falco said. “Mark has now worked under three head coaches at Sachem and I am sure he will be able to find his own style that will allow Sachem East Football to grow and develop into a successful program."

Woj will continue to be the dean at Sachem North, a position he wants to keep as the school will go through a transition period next year with Ed Paquette, the school's other dean, possibly retiring after this school year.

With the theme “We Are Sachem” swirling around the school district, Woj said now is the time to instill his personal passion for the community within the football program at East.

“Whoever surrounds me is going to have that same passion,” he said. “I will not allow anyone to not love this place. We go to school at a place called East, but we are Sachem. That’s something I need to instill in everyone, the players, coaches and teaching staff.”

To many people’s surprise, Woj does have a 1-0 record as a head coach in his career. During the 2006 season at North when Falco was serving a one-game suspension from being ejected the previous week, Sachem North beat Ward Melville, 31-28, to clinch its first playoff berth since the split and Wojciechowski was the interim head coach.

“Head coaching is more than what happens on game day,” he said, laughing as he recalled that moment. “That’s the smallest aspect. It’s organizing the soft room or hard room, sweeping up the locker room after everyone’s gone and making sure everything is in place so everyone can do their jobs efficiently.”

The Woj File

• Sachem graduate, Class of 1986
• College: University of Massachusetts
• Major Awards: Hansen and N.Y. Player of the Year
• Nickname: "Woj"
• Favorite time of game: "When I'm on the sidelines just before the game starts, there's this peace that comes over me," he said.