From grueling practices to star plays, the St. Edward’s Football Team is ready to end its 2022 season. The final game ended with St. Edward crushing Elmwood Park 52 – 0, making the final record for the season 2 wins and 7 losses. Coach Mike “Ro” Rolando says that while they might not have had many wins this year, “the boys have really put in a great effort and had a great attitude at practice every day”. He also states that 6 of the 8 teams they played were playoff teams, and were tough opponents. The football team has also faced some adversity with injuries, but several players stepped up and filled in when they needed to, more than ready to keep the team playing & the spirit alive.

Senior Jason Garcia said that it was a great experience to spend some time with his closest friends, and he will miss the team dearly. He’s been playing the sport since second grade, and says “I do believe that I have improved, earning a starting spot as the season progressed, and I greatly enjoyed my last season”.

A new player to the team, freshman Lucas Buckhardt, very much enjoyed the season. He says that it was his first year ever playing football and he met a bunch of great people to practice with. He says that he feels like he has improved since the beginning of the season. “I know the guys and coaches have seen me improve since I have never played before,” he commented. “The coaches were a great help improving me from zero to now being able to play. It was a fun season this year for me.”.

Senior Aiden “Texas” Krech also agrees that it was a great season, despite the team’s record. “We overcame a lot of adversity and grew together,” he says. “I think I improved a lot, especially since it was my first year, and had little knowledge of the sport.”.  He played football freshman and senior year.

Coach Ro also says that “they also did a great job focusing on the academic side of things, with zero kids ineligible this season. I’m very proud of their effort there as well. This was a great group to coach, with everyone coming to practice every day and having a lot of fun.”

With the season coming to a close, a chapter of St. Ed’s Football is ending as well. Coach Ro will be stepping down as the coach of the football team after coaching for 18 years. He makes his players hold up his “five pillars”: pride, respect, discipline, academic excellence, and teamwork. Coach Ro also started putting bricks with names of past seniors in the walkway to the football field, which still carries on today, took St. Ed’s Football to 7 playoff appearances, & greatly impacted the football program. Senior Luciano Ronaldo, the coach’s son, says, “The program my dad has built is by far the most disciplined in the conference. That is why the 5 of his previous players that are taking over the program will carry on his legacy.”

Coach Ro announced this at the PowderPuff and Pep Rally during homecoming weekend. He is proud to say that “the team has come a long way, learned a lot over the summer, and formed a really tight bond over the season and the past 4 years. This will go down as one of the most enjoyable seasons because of the great kids!”