Wallkill coach Vegliando stepping down

By Mike Zummo
Posted 1/26/22

The guard is changing for the Wallkill football team as coach Brian Vegliando announced last week that he was stepping down, ending his second stint as the Panthers’ head coach.

He will be …

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Wallkill coach Vegliando stepping down

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The guard is changing for the Wallkill football team as coach Brian Vegliando announced last week that he was stepping down, ending his second stint as the Panthers’ head coach.

He will be replaced by offensive coordinator and former Wallkill High School quarterback Joe Pillitteri, who was approved on Wednesday by the Wallkill Central School District Board of Education.

“Obviously, I can’t thank coach Vegliando enough for not only what he’s done for the program,” Pillitteri said.

“He was very successful, accumulating 50 wins in his tenure and also brought us a few division championships, along with a sectional championship. But he’s done a ton for me personally as well. I was able to have a very successful high school career under him, and he mentored me as I developed as a coach over the past six years. He’s also been a mentor to me in life, in general.”

Vegliando stepped down to spend more time with his family and his two children, one of which is a freshman in high school and the other is in seventh grade.

“I want to be around a little bit more for both in the things they’re involved in,” Vegliando said. “And with that, you can’t put in the time that’s really necessary to be the head coach. I don’t think it’s fair to the kids in the program to be part time, and I think it’s time to pass the reins.”

Vegliando began his first stint as coach in 2009, leading the Panthers to a berth in the Section 9 Class A championship game, where the season ended to the Cornwall Dragons. In 2010, the Panthers won the sectional championship.

They reached the section title game in all five of his seasons before he stopped away following the 2013 season.

Vegliando returned as head coach after the Panthers went 0-10 in 2017. Wallkill went 2-7 during his first year back and posted a 5-4 record in 2019. They took a step back during the Spring 2021 COVID-19 season, rebounded in a big way in 2021.

The Panthers won the Section 9 Class A Division 2 championship and were eliminated by the eventual Section 9 Class A champions, the Minisink Valley Warriors in the sectional semifinals.

The Panthers also took back the Battle of the Valley helmet with a 7-0 win over the Valley Central Vikings on Oct. 15, 2021.

He finished with a 50-38 record.

“I’m proud of the growth we’ve made,” Vegliando said. “Obviously, we’ve won a good number of games, especially in the fall and we were division champs. That’s a validation of the work that we put in. But if you look at where the program is, in terms of numbers and participation, it’s way up from where it was. The kind of pride and buy-in from the school community and the greater community at large was really big. The turnout on Friday nights was awesome to see.”

Now, he’s going to turn the program over to his former quarterback, Pillitteri, who in his senior year, led the Panthers to the Section 9 Class A championship game, where the Panthers lost to Cornwall.

“I think No. 1, he’s passionate about the game of football, and about mentoring and helping young kids,” Vegliando said. “He’s a really good teacher of the sport. He’s a good teacher in the classroom, too. He’s really organized, and he builds really good relationships with kids.”

Pillitteri has been an assistant coach for six years. He was also the JV head coach and was the Panthers’ offensive coordinator this past fall. He’s also the JV boys’ basketball and JV baseball coach.
This is first varsity head coaching position.

“I’m absolutely thrilled,” Pillitteri said. “I couldn’t be more thankful to our school board, our administration and our community for putting this trust in me. This has been a dream of mine for a long time.”
Having been in the program and retaining most of the staff, some of which he played with, he’s headed right into the Panthers’ offseason program as they prepare for the fall.

“We’ve got just a really dedicated group that I think is focused on success,” Pillitteri said. “I think that’s going to make this transition easier, having a dedicated group of kids and a great, dedicated staff. I think a very supportive school board and administration are going to make this transition very easy for me.”