St. Clair football hires Andrew Szalkowski as its next coach
ST. CLAIR — While eight months still remain in the offseason, a new era for the St. Clair football team begins now.
The Saints have hired Andrew Szalkowski as their next coach. He replaces James Bishop, who retired in November after seven seasons and a 33-34 overall record.
"It's an extreme honor," Szalkowski told the Times Herald. "But with that comes a lot of responsibility, which I don't take lightly. Anytime your dealt servant leadership, in regard with helping young people succeed, it's an extreme responsibility. I look forward to getting to know the community and being able to impact the young people in this community."
"What really stood out about Andrew is just the energy we felt (from him)," St. Clair athletic director Jim Ellis said. "Seeing his excitement and overall enthusiasm — just that whole anticipation for a new way of doing things. That's what stood out to me the most."
Szalkowski spent the last two years as an inside receivers coach with the Ferris State University football team. Prior to that, he was the running backs coach at Lutheran North High School in Macomb from 2020-21.
The Michigan native graduated from Eisenhower High School in Utica, where he played football and baseball. Szalkowski then continued his baseball career at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. During college, he was also an assistant strength and conditioning coach with the school.
"I've had a couple different stops at much different landscapes," Szalkowski said.
His latest stop already has St. Clair buzzing.
"I have not had a coach be this enthused about getting started right away," Ellis said. "Andrew was in the building every day last week when he didn't have to be. But he just realizes the importance getting to know the lay of the land and meeting the kids. I couldn't ask for a better start. He hit the ground running. We're very excited here."
The feeling is mutual. And while football is Szalkowski's specialty, he wants his reach to go far beyond the field.
"The community aspect (of this job) is really important," Szalkowski said. "I'm looking forward to ingratiating myself into the community, getting to know what makes it tick and being of service to the community — not just in regards to football, but helping out in any way that I can."
Contact Brenden Welper at bwelper@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrendenWelper.
This article originally appeared on Port Huron Times Herald: St. Clair football hires Andrew Szalkowski as its next coach
