Zachary Benedek has been hired as the new head football coach at Mars Area High School.
The Mars Area school board voted 7-2 on Tuesday to hire Benedek to replace Eric Kasperowicz as the team’s high school football coach.
Prior to entering the coaching ranks, Benedek played quarterback at Elizabeth Forward High School, where he helped lead his team to back-to-back conference titles in 2017 and 2018.Â
Elizabeth Forward quarterback Zachary Benedek looks on during a game against Deer Lakes on August 31, 2018 at Warrior Stadium in Elizabeth Township.Benedek was named the new head football coach at Mars Area High School.
Mike Darnay / Mon Valley Independent
After graduating from Elizabeth Forward, Benedek played college football at Saint Francis and at Clarion, where he also began his coaching career as a tight end coach.
Benedek most recently served as the passing game coordinator and quarterback coach at Mt. Lebanon and according to the Cranberry Eagle, said that he started to feel last year that he wanted to run his own football program.
At age 25, Benedek will be one of the youngest head coaches in the WPIAL, alongside fellow Mon Valley native Dustin Shoaf, who took over at Southmoreland last year, leading the Scotties to a 9-1 record and a playoff appearance.
During the 2018 season, Benedek and Shoaf played against one another in a game between Elizabeth Forward and Yough.
Yough’s Dustin Shoaf and Elizabeth Forward’s Zachary Benedek pose for a photo together following a game on October 26, 2018 at Warrior Stadium in Elizabeth Township. The two former WPIAL standouts are now coaching at Southmoreland and at Mars, respectively.
Mike Darnay / Mon Valley Independent
On that late October rainy night, Benedek surpassed the 1,000 yard rushing mark on the season while Shoaf broke the 5,000 career rushing yard mark.Â
Coaching changes in the WPIALÂ
Eric Kasperowicz’s move from Mars to North Hills is one of several changes in the WPIAL’s coaching carousel this offseason at some of the Pittsburgh-area’s larger school districts.
Last month, Bob Palko was officially hired to return to West Allegheny, the place where he won eight WPIAL titles and one PIAA state championship over a tenure that lasted nearly 25 years.