LEETSDALE – The 2017 Quaker Valley High School football season was something out of a storybook. Against all odds, they captured the first WPIAL and state championships in school history. But, at the end of the season they still found themselves looking for a new head coach.
Almost six months removed from that storybook ending, the Quakers believe they have found their new leader for the 2018 season and beyond.
Quaker Valley formally hired Ron Balog as their new head coach last week. The Ohio native played college football at Muskingum University in Ohio, then moved to the Pittsburgh area in 1991 after graduation and, the for the past few seasons, has been coaching at Pittsburgh Central Catholic as a quarterbacks coach and the freshman head coach.
Balog’s football resume doesn’t stop there. Before he started contributing to the football program at Central Catholic, the former quarterback helped create the North Pittsburgh Catholic Ironmen, where he coached kids in 3rd through 8th grades. With his experience and philosophy towards the sport of football, Quaker Valley Athletic Director Mike Mastroianni thought he was the perfect fit.
“He was impressive in all aspects,” Mastroianni said. “From a coaching aspect he seemed great, but his leadership and his philosophy with our approach at Quaker Valley as a school district and as an athletic program. His beliefs were very identical to our approach.”
Mastroianni and the Quaker Valley boys basketball team were in the middle of WPIAL and state playoffs when Balog first applied for the job after several friends, who had kids go to school in the QV school district, urged him to apply.
“Then, it kind of exploded within a 10-day period,” Balog said. “It was kind of just crazy, the process was rapid.”
The Quakers did their due diligence though. Mastroianni said they interviewed about eight candidates for the position. Balog said he came back to the school on three separate occasions, meeting with high school principal Deborah Riccobelli, superintendent Heidi Ondek and Mastroianni before he was offered the position.
“I’m just really grateful and happy that it happened,” Balog said.
The new Quakers head coach will be taking over for interim head coach Jerry Veshio, who took over the team last year after former coach John Tortorea abruptly left the team before training camp started.
Balog has already met with the team and with the staff from last year’s state championship team, and with the success that they had last year, he said there’s really no reason to make any changes to the staff.
“I’m a fan of continuity,” Balog said. “And from the success that was had here last year and with the great group of juniors that will be seniors next year, I don’t think there’s any reason to come in and turn over the apple cart.”
The Quakers will lose 10 players to graduation at the end of this school year, including key contributors from last years' team like quarterback Ricky Guss and athletes Jordan Taylor and Isaiah McNair.
All three were major contributors on both sides of the ball, but Balog believes one of the biggest challenges for his first year at the helm will be to fill four of the starting lineman position.
“One starter coming back and there were a couple guys that played a lot and rotated in, but I think it all starts up front and molding a new offensive line,” Balog said.
If one thing is for sure though, Balog plans to stick to the basics and preach the fundamentals of the sport, which is one thing that he thought the Quakers did so well last year under Veshio. As the saying goes, “If it’s not broke, don’t fix it.”