Chris Rizzo's teaching and football coaching career took him over 2,000 miles away from his hometown.
But the right opportunity, a the right time, brought him back.
Rizzo, a Bethel Park native, took over the North Catholic football program a couple of weeks ago following a successful run as the coach of Ironwood High School in Glendale, Arizona.
"My wife Sarah and I are getting to the point in our lives where we want to start having a family," said Rizzo, 29. "Both of our families are from here, South Hills area. It was just really, really important to us that when we take that next step, that we were around family."
Rizzo gained familiarity with the program years ago. One of his former college teammates at John Carroll, Alex Kline, is a graduate of the Cranberry Township based school.
"Alex had nothing but positive things to say about North Catholic, not only when we went to school together, but whenever I spoke to him about this opportunity," Rizzo said. "The more and more that I started to branch out and reach out about this North Catholic community, I found out that a lot of people in my life have exposure to this school.
"It revealed itself to be a really, really special place. They care so much about their athletic programs. I heard about how tight the alumni base is, and I've had the chance to meet some incredible alum."
Rizzo was a two-way standout at Bethel Park under Jeff Metheny from 2007-2011 before playing on the defensive line at John Carroll.
He coached at John Carroll, then got into the high school ranks after earning a Master of Education degree from the school.
Four years ago, he and Sarah took a leap, going from Euclid, Ohio out west.
"I'm extremely fortunate that I got my first shot at 25," he said.
He and Ironwood reached the 2020 5A state championship game, as the program reached that level of success for the first time in almost 20 years.
When the North Catholic job opened up, he started to do some research on its potential. The Trojans are coming off a 5-5 season in 2022, but have been one of the WPIAL's better teams of the last several seasons.
"They've had historic success recently," said Rizzo, who replaces Pat O'Shea. "One of the more intriguing things about the job is that we're now playing 4A football. I believe that Western PA football is some of the best in the country.
"This is one of the best places to play high school football."
He met with the players early on, and likes the group.
"I'm a big fan of some of the things I see with our athleticism and size," said Rizzo, who is not locked into specific schemes. "I've run it all. I've coached in all kinds of systems."
Rizzo feels he and his staff can continue to proud tradition of the Trojans football program, and even take it to newer, better heights.
"Whenever I had the chance to see that there are a couple of things they can do to get over the hump, and that there are a couple of things that I can provide, I was really excited about the prospect of guiding this program," he said. "And then getting to the next level."
