Former Wilton AD Nick Zeoli remembered as a ‘Father of the FCIAC’

Former Wilton High athletic director Nick Zeoli was, in the words of several former coaching colleagues, one of the “fathers of the FCIAC.”

A legend in Connecticut athletics, Zeoli died Thursday morning at the age of 98.

As word of his death spread Thursday, Wilton baseball coach Tim Eagen’s cell phone filled up with messages from friends of Zeoli and former Warriors athletes.

“I’ve been getting a lot of messages from the old guard who played sports at Wilton High School,” said Eagen, who was hired by Zeoli 40 years ago. “That kind of outpouring means you left your mark. If you can do that, no matter how big or small, it means you’ve done your job on earth, and Nick sure did.”

Zeoli, a native of Saugatuck and a Staples High graduate, was at the heart of Wilton athletics for more than four decades. He was the high school’s first football coach, leading the team for 13 years, and its first athletic director for 41 years before retiring in 1994.

He also coached Wilton’s track and field and cross country programs, and the school’s field house is named in his honor.

With Zeoli at the forefront, the Warriors’ sports programs became a force at the FCIAC and state level, and that success was a source of pride for Zeoli.

“Nick wanted Wilton to be the best and he bragged about Wilton being the best,” Eagen said. “He was on CIAC committees and he used to go up there and brag about Wilton. He took so much pride in Wilton athletics and Wilton High School to be the best in everything.”

Zeoli also helped build the FCIAC alongside people such as John Kuczo and Ralph King during the league’s early years. With Zeoli as Wilton’s AD, his school hosted many conference tournaments and events.

“Nick Zeoli was all about the FCIAC, the Connecticut coaches association, and the national coaches association,” said former Brien McMahon athletic director Joe Madaffari. “He was a true leader. Nick, (John) Kuczo, Ralph (King), in those days, they kept the

FCIAC going. He was a firm believer in how strong the FCIAC was. What he did for the league was just amazing.”

“Nick came into the league about 12 years after it was formed, and he was invaluable,” said Kuczo, the former FCIAC commissioner. “Right away he wanted to be in a leadership role and he immediately brought Wilton to the forefront of the league. He was so enthusiastic about getting things accomplished and making Wilton the best it could be.”

A World War II veteran, Zeoli served for three years in the Navy in the Pacific Theater.

After his discharge, he graduated from Arnold College in 1950, received a master’s degree in administration from Columbia University in 1952 and a master’s degree in administration of physical education and athletics from the University of Bridgeport in 1964.

Zeoli has been inducted into the FCIAC and CHSCA halls of fame, and in 2000 was inducted into the National High School Athletic Coaches Association Hall of Fame.

Zeoli’s contributions to athletics went far beyond Wilton, according to Madaffari.

“It wasn’t just Wilton; it was the league and the kids,” he said. “Nick was one of the great fathers of the FCIAC. He was a character. He was loud, he was vocal and he could be harsh, but when it came down to it, he had the league in his mind, no matter what.”

Eagen said he owes a lot to Zeoli, who made him the Warriors’ baseball coach and got him a job as a physical education teacher at Wilton High School.

“When I was a young coach getting started, guys like (football coach) Tom Fujitani and (boys lacrosse coach) Guy Whitten were like Nick’s sons,” Eagen said. “He really took us under his wing and tried to make us really great examples of what Wilton should be and is today.

“I feel sorry for people in Wilton who didn’t get the opportunity to meet Nick,” Eagen said. “He was such a giving person.”