The San Francisco 49ers 2016 Charlie Wedemeyer Memorial Coach of the Week program opens the gates with St. Francis Head Coach, Greg Calcagno. Coach Calcagno was selected as the Week 1 Coach of the Week after the decisive win over Oak Grove High School in what was the rematch of last year's CCS Championship Game to kick off the 2016 season. With a chance for redemption, the Lancers came out pounding at home. It was clear they felt they had something to prove.
Going into the half, the rematch felt eerily similar to the title game with St. Francis heading to the locker room up 14-0. However, there was no way Calcagno's squad was going to allow the second half to follow suit.
"Our guys knew it. We talked about that game all week long. They certainly knew it was a similar situation," said Calcagno. "But they also knew that last year didn't matter. Last year's team was last year's team. This is a brand new team, and it was up to those guys in that locker room to produce a different result. Our kids did a good job."
Credit the Lancers' defense, which completely disabled Oak Grove from generating any steam offensively. It was that stout defense that was the theme of the game; not that this is something new to the St. Francis program.
"Defense has always been our focus. Definitely what we hang our hat on and anyone familiar with our program knows that," insisted Calcagno. "We aren't going to try to outscore you. We want to stay in every game by playing well defensively."
Calcagno's DL seemed to consistently be in the backfield, and was all over the Oak Grove quarterback all night long. The experience in the St. Francis secondary certainly helps, with three starters from 2015 returning, though they are quick to credit the play of their defensive line for their successes. Overall, the Lancers' defense looks like be a force to be reckoned with again in 2016.
It wasn't until the 4th quarter when Oak Grove managed to get on the board. And to the Lancers' liking, St. Francis took round one, 24-7. This will most likely not be the last time they see Oak Grove in 2016.
When asked whether this rematch week one came with any extra motivation, or if the win was extra sweet, Calcagno humbly resisted:
"I mean certainly the fact that we lost that last game added to it; we had to sit on that loss for an awfully long time- 9 months … but there is never a lack of motivation for that first game of the season."
Calcagno continued, "We play OG every year and have for probably 36 years now. They are such a good football team and have such a great program; it's always a good test for us."
This is Head Coach Greg Calcagno's fourth year at the helm of the St. Francis program. Before taking over the reins of the varsity squad, Calcagno spent four years coaching the JV team. The longtime St. Francis coach is looking forward to the tough competition of their league and aiming to make their way back to the playoffs in 2016.
As our Coach of the Week, Greg Calcagno will receive a $1,000 grant for the St. Francis football program from the 49ers Foundation. As part of this award, he will also receive two tickets to a 49ers home game where he will be recognized on the field. The week prior to the game, Coach Calcagno will be invited to the visit the SAP Performance Facility to watch a closed practice where 49ers head coach Chip Kelly will officially present him with his award. Coach Calcagno will also be featured on Cal-Hi Sports during their programming this weekend.
Congratulations, Coach Calcagno!
