How a Bergen Catholic grad resurrected a proud Sussex County football program
The response came back faster than Dom Gaston ever expected.
Twelve years ago, Gaston − now the Pope John football coach − sent an email introduction to then-coach Brian Carlson. As a 21-year-old fresh out of college, Gaston was looking for a way to stay in the game following a four-year playing career at Wagner College.
Carlson got back to him right away.
“The whole Pope John opportunity happened so fast. It kind of fell in my lap,” Gaston said. “[Brian] Carlson asked me to meet for an interview. But I found that he knew a lot more about me before I even walked in the door the first time. It turns out that he did his own research and background on me and knew a lot about my past and football career. Before I knew it, I began a professional and friendly relationship with him that stands to this day.”
Gaston initially reached out to Carlson because he thought the culture and tradition at the Sparta parochial school resembled the school he played at: Bergen Catholic in Oradell.
At best, Gaston thought Carlson may offer him a job on the freshman coaching staff. So the youngster felt shocked when the veteran coach offered him a varsity spot coaching linebackers.
“I didn’t see that one coming. I’m a young kid out of college expecting an entry-level position,” Gaston said. “It was a big deal at the time and it shifted my career in the direction I knew it was meant to go in.”
Gaston spent the 2012 season as a Pope John assistant coach and returned for another stint from 2015-17, sandwiched in between college coaching jobs. In 2021, he replaced Carlson as the Lions' head coach, becoming the seventh head coach in the 59-year history of the program.
Today, the 33-year old rookie coach has the Pope John community reinvigorated. At the midway point of the regular season, Gaston’s Lions are 4-1 and tied atop the SFC United White division with defending champion DePaul. This year's team already owns signature wins over Seton Hall and Paramus Catholic.
He’s back where his coaching career started and insists that he’s the right guy in the right place at the right time.
Learning the game at Bergen Catholic
Gaston’s love for football started his freshman year at Bergen Catholic. That’s where he learned the principles of physical, fast, smart football while playing under the direction of longtime coach Fred Stengel.
Stengel, who compiled a 192-49 record in 22 years and built the Crusaders into one of the state's premier football programs, continues to mentor Gaston to this day.
“He’s the first person I call when I need advice," Gaston said. "I learned so much from him. He’s my guy."
For two years of his high-school career, Gaston lived with Stengel. He moved in to be closer to school after getting into a serious car accident when he fell asleep at the wheel one evening while commuting to his Vernon home.
During his time in the Stengel residence, Gaston said he was "like a sponge," taking in everything Stengel knew about the game and coaching student-athletes.
"He became part of our family in those years that he lived with me and still is today," Stengel said. "He reminds me of me when I broke into coaching many years ago. My mentor was the late Lou Rettino, who coached at Union High School. What I am to Dominique, Rettino was to me. My role and presence in Dominique's life are reversed."
Hearkening back to the glory days
While Stengel and Carlson helped mold him, Gaston reminds many Pope John fans of late coach Vic Paternostro, who spent 43 years helming the Lions. Paternostro amassed a state-record 373 wins, won 20 sectional titles and 19 Sussex County Interscholastic League crowns before retiring after the 2010 season.
“Vic was all about the team and family, I hear. ... He would have his defense over his house for dinner on Friday nights and then breakfast with his offense on Saturday mornings,” said Gaston, a math teacher like Paternostro. “I could never be Vic Paternostro, but I can replicate the family values and atmosphere that he preached. He’s a guy and coach that you want to play for, and if I could be half of what he was, I’m blessed.”
During the last three years, Gaston has tapped into Pope John's alumni base and invited former players back on campus to speak with the team and talk about the glory days under Paternostro. Gaston believes the past is a gateway to the future.
Since he took over in 2021, the Lions have taken some gradual steps in their quest to return their storied program to prominence. Last fall, Pope John won four games for the first time in five years. The program is also growing in numbers, going from 30 players on last year's roster to 55 this fall.
Things are going well off the field, too. In August, Gaston married his wife, Briana, the Pope John cheer coach and a teacher at Alpine Elementary School in Sparta.
On Friday night, Gaston and his Lions travel to undefeated Immaculata (5-0) in a SFC crossover game in Somerville. A victory would mark the first time Pope John has posted at least five wins in a season since going 6-4 in 2017.
"Dominique is attracting the right kind of student-athletes and bringing the Pope John community together," Stengel said. "He has a great school administration behind him that's committed to the culture and family environment. All of this is needed to build a meaningful and great program."
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Pope John NJ football resurrected by Dom Gaston, Bergen Catholic grad
