Ex-Lake coach O’Donnell gets Brookside job

Scott O’Donnell will be back on the sideline as a head football coach next fall.

The former Lake Catholic head coach will take over at Brookside High School in Lorain County.

O’Donnell announced the news via his Twitter account.

“I’m excited to announce my new opportunity as Head Football Coach at Brookside High School @BrooksideSports. Go Cardinals!”

He was approved by the Brookside school board on March 11. O’Donnell takes over for Paul Ferguson, who spent the last four seasons as the Cardinals’ head coach. He will also teach business at the high school.

O’Donnell has a challenge ahead of him at Brookside. The football team was 2-8 in 2018 and 2017, and in 2016 it was 1-9. Its last winning record was 2015 with a 6-4 mark.

Brookside is a Divison IV school that will join the Lorain County Conference next season.

“Building a winning culture is not easy but there are two things we are going to work on,” said O’Donnell. “One is accountability and the other is expectations. And it’s about building relationships with coaches and players.”

Last season, O’Donnell stepped down as Lake Catholic’s coach on Oct. 29 after a campaign in which he led his team to a 6-4 mark.

The Cougars were in contention for a postseason spot, but missed the Division III state playoffs.

He was eventually replaced by another Lake Catholic and JCU grad Marty Gibbons. In his five years as Lake’s head coach, O’Donnell’s record was 2525 record.

Following his decision to step down at Lake, O’Donnell said he wasn’t sure what was next for him as a football coach. The next few months, however, proved to O’Donnell football will always be a part of him.

“You start to wonder about things,” said O’Donnell. “I went from not doing anything (in football), then to thinking, ‘Do I want to be an assistant?’ Then this came about. I feel

called to do it.”

The move to the west side of Northeast Ohio will be a change for O’Donnell, a Willowick native and resident, a 1993 graduate of Lake Catholic and a member of the Cougars’ 1991 and 1992 state championship teams as a standout defensive end.

He played at John Carroll and became a Division III All-American and the Blue Streaks’ all-time leader in sacks.

Prior to coming back to Lake Catholic as an assistant in 2003, O’Donnell assisted four years at St. Edward and two years at John Carroll.

As for his transition to the west side, O’Donnell, who with his wife have three children, is excited about the next chapter in his coaching career.

“The young men, everyone at the school have been welcoming,” he said. “It feels like home.”

NEWS-HERALD FILE Former Lake Catholic coach Scott O’Donnell is the new coach at Brookside High School in Lorain County.