Pittsburgh Catholic Newspaper - News and Features

News & Features

A credit to his sport and school
archived from: 2013-02-01
by: John Franko

Longtime football coach Bob Jacoby looks back in retirement

The sidelines at Bishop Canevin High School football games will be different next year¬†without Bob Jacoby. The venerable coach has retired after 40 years at the helm.

Jacoby retired from teaching after the 2011-12 year, and he said he felt disconnected from the student body and younger members of the faculty.

"I felt that maybe this was the time to retire from football," he said.

Jacoby amassed some 235 wins during his career. In 1990, he guided the Crusaders to the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League championship with a thrilling 21-20 win over Washington at Three Rivers Stadium. The team advanced to the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association AA final, where it dropped a tough 20-19 decision to Hanover Area in overtime.

His 1983 team lost to Jeannette 6-0 in the 1983 WPIAL AA final.

One of the biggest benefits of his coaching career, he noted, was that it was shared by his entire family. His wife, Sherry, missed only two games during his career, and sons Eric and Neal played for him and later coached with him.

"It was a family thing," he said.

His best memories were watching players come in as freshmen and seeing them develop as players and students. He has seen many of them raise families and become successful in life.

"I was just passing through their world for a period of time, but it's been very rewarding for me to have had these associations all these years with these guys," he said. He still hears from many of them, and the fond memories that come back make him smile.

Ed Page was a member of the 1983 team. He pointed out that while Jacoby's record speaks for itself, he is even a better man than coach.

"Sadly, and probably not uncommonly, I did not fully appreciate him until years later when the life lessons he imparted really started to sink in," he said. "If I had to reflect on five people who shaped my life, he would definitely be on that list."

Now coaching a youth team himself, Page noted that he finds himself trying to pass on some of what he learned under Jacoby. He said he ran into his former coach at a coaching clinic last summer and realized that he was still learning from him 30 years later.

"Bob Jacoby is a credit to his sport, his school, the coaching profession and his faith," he said. "He represents what is good and honorable about sports and life. I wish him the best in his retirement."

Jacoby said he enjoyed combining teaching and coaching because they gave him the opportunity to provide a good foundation for students, both educationally and academically.

One of the things he'll miss most about coaching is game day, he said, especially the moments with his team just before the opening kick off.

"I didn't want to be anywhere else at that moment than with those guys," he said. "It was always a special time." He was an assistant coach for five years before he took over as head coach.

Jacoby also coached the softball team at the school for 30 years. His 1990 team won the WPIAL title, and his 1999 team won both the WPIAL and PIAA titles.

His daughters, Tracey and Carrie, both played for him. Jacoby is already busy shuttling his 11 grandchildren to various activities. He is also looking forward to Sherry's retirement from the education field at the end of the school year.

He said he is proud to be associated with one school for so many years. He noted the tremendous amount of support from both the faculty and administration over the years, and he could not have asked for a better job situation.

"It was such a rewarding experience for myself and my family," he said. "It was great."

E-mail this story