Serra loses OC Steven Lo to St. John Bosco

Hired to help modernize the Serra offense, Lo made his mark by leading the most effective offense in school history. His five years with the Padres culminated in a CIF Division 2-AA state championship, as Serra smashed a number of program records in the process.

The 2017 Padres set school records for total points scored (632), yards in a season (6,474), yards per game (431.6) and touchdowns in a season (88).

“Coach Lo obviously had a massive impact on our offense,” Serra head coach Patrick Walsh said. “But what’s more important and has always been more important at Serra is the impact on the kids here at Serra. A coach’s legacy goes further than the impact on the record books. And it’s those relationships he’s formed with the kids is what I’ll remember the most.”

Walsh will take over as offensive coordinator. In addition to head coach, he has served as the offensive line coach for the past five years.

Lo said the decision to leave Serra was “100 percent a life decision,” citing the cost of living as the sole reason he is making the change.

“If I could afford to live near Serra, or even within an hour of Serra, I’d find a way to make it happen,” Lo said. “I didn’t want to leave to be honest with you.”

Not only will Lo be leaving Serra, it means he will no longer be partnered with defensive coordinator Chris Vasseur. The two were hired at the same time prior to the 2013 season. They previously coached together at St. Francis in 2012, and at Gilroy High School starting in 2009.

“It’s tough because it’s been my home the last five years,” Lo said. “For me, I’m losing … my work family. The community at Serra is truly special. … To walk away from all those people, it’s not easy. The relationships I’ve formed with the players, what they’ve given to me in the five years I’ve been there, it wasn’t easy to walk away from. It’s bittersweet.”

Walsh said it was too early to tell if any more changes will be made to the coaching staff. But the sentiment he expressed at Lo’s departure signaled the end of an era.

“Oh my gosh. Every great season has a bunch of different reasons why the season was great,” Walsh said. “But the relationship we had on our coaching staff this year was as good as we’ve had at Serra.”

In joining the staff at St. John Bosco, Lo joins a perennial contender that has much in common with Serra. St. John Bosco is also an all-boys’ school. And the Braves are two years removed from winning a state championship, defeating De La Salle in the 2016 CIF Open Division title game.

“To be honest it’s very, very similar team to the program Serra has,” Lo said, “a strong tradition of winning, a strong disciplined football program. The reason I made the move is because I knew I’d be going to a team like Patrick had and … knew I’d fit in.”