Zortman named head football coach at Homestead
Homestead announced the hiring of Drake Zortman as its football coach Tuesday, a move that gives the program a leader with previous head coaching experience and great familiarity with the Highlanders program.
Zortman and defensive coordinator Matt Wolf shared interim head coaching duties this past season after the departure of Dave Keel, who resigned in July after 30 seasons. The Highlanders went 4-5.
“Drake embraces the importance of the positive impact he and the coaching staff can have academically and athletically on our students,” Homestead athletic director Erich Hinterstocker said in a news release. “He has been an integral part of Homestead High School as an educator, building leader, and coach.”
The district also announced that Wolf will return as the defensive coordinator, providing added continuity for the program after the two led Homestead through a challenging season marked by players sidelined due to COVID-19 protocols.
This will be Zortman's second head coaching job.
He spent four seasons (2011-14) at Messmer/Shorewood where he led a co-op featuring two schools without much history of football success to a 20-17 record, with three playoff appearances and a Midwest Classic Conference title in 2013.
He has been Homestead's offensive coordinator since returning to the school in 2015. That run includes state championship seasons in 2015 and '18.
Homestead has been one of the state's top programs for decades. It won six state titles under Keel (1999, 2006, '08, 12, 15, 18) and was the state runner-up in 2007.