When Sacred Heart Prep football coach Pete Lavorato arrived in Atherton to take over the football program in 2003, the Gators were hardly a juggernaut.
“Here’s what I thought: great school, but I knew it would take some time (to build a program),” Lavorato said. “The kids were great, but the program itself was what I would call a ‘rec’ program.”
Fast forward 12 years and the Gators are now among the elite in the Central Coast Section.
As is Lavorato, who picked up his 100th win with Sacred Heart Prep following a 35-21 win over King’s Academy last Saturday to improve to 4-0 in 2014.
You won’t, however, find Lavorato breaking his arm patting himself on the back.
“I think it’s a testament to more than me, it’s a testament to the kids who have been through the school. … All those kids who have come through (the program) have been a part of the process. … It’s a testament to them, it’s a testament to the coaching staff,” Lavorato said.
Lavorato passed the 100-win plateau as a coach years ago, as he has served as the head man at Gilroy for three seasons before spending 11 years coaching in Canada as both a high school coach, as well as college and pro assistant.
A native Canadian, Lavorato spent 10 years playing in the Canadian Football League with the Edmonton Eskimos, which were quarterbacked by hall of famer Warren Moon.
There are some differences between the American and Canadian versions of the game, but as Lavorato said: “Football is football. I coached my kids in Canada the same as I do now. The offense I run now is the same offense I ran back then.”
During his time with the Gators, Lavorato has not had a losing record. In fact, the closest he has come was a 5-5 mark in 2006. He has averaged eight wins a season since 2003 and Lavorato’s teams have averaged 10.5 wins per season since the Gators entered the Peninsula Athletic League for the 2008 season. With Lavorato at the helm, the Gators have made four CCS championship games, winning it all in 2010, 2012 and 2013.
Since 2008, the Gators have won 11 or more games four times.
The guess is Lavorato won’t stop at 100 wins either. While he doesn’t know how long he plans to keep coaching, he thinks he knows when it will be time to leave, but that seems to be a ways off.
“As long as they’ll have me and it remains fun, I’ll stick around,” Lavorato said.
***
Bill Daskarolis’ name will live in perpetuity at Aragon as the San Mateo Union School District announced last week the running track at Aragon would be named after the longtime coach.
Daskarolis is in his 51st year as the Dons’ cross country, and track and field coach.
This past spring, Daskarolis was honored by the California Coaches’ Association with its Dan Fukushima Lifetime Achievement Award and was enshrined in the Aragon Hall of Fame in its initial induction class in 2008.
***
Despite toiling away in relative obscurity, the Crystal Springs Uplands School eight-man football team improved to 2-0 on the season following a 36-22 win over Alma Heights-Pacifica Friday.
The Gryphons have fielded an eight-man squad six out of the last seven years — taking a hiatus in 2012.
Crystal Springs is a member of the eight-team Mission Trail League, which features programs from San Francisco to San Juan Bautista.
In its six years of existence, the Gryphons have compiled an overall record of 25-13.
Crystal Springs will host Woodside Priory at 1 p.m. Saturday.
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
Only subscribers can view and post comments on articles.
Already a subscriber? Login Here
suebeckmeyer said:
LittleFoot said:
LittleFoot said:
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.