High school football: Amherst stays in-house, hires assistant Kenny Fritz as football coach

AMHERST — Mike Passerrello has moved on so does that mean Amherst football is on The Fritz? Apparently so. Kenny Fritz, that is. Amherst athletic director Casey Wolf announced Friday that Fritz will replace Passerrello as football coach, pending board approval. Fritz was on Passerrello's staff last year and previously coached at Medina Highland and Brunswick, where he graduated in 2015. He's a graduate of Akron University. "Mike did a great job," Fritz said of his predecessor. "I learned a lot from Coach Pass. When he decided to step down, I was fortunate to able to retain just about everyone from the staff. "We had a great senior class that graduated but I'm really looking forward to working with the kids coming back. The biggest thing I want the kids to learn is how to represent Amherst and represent the community. The (Southwestern) conference is incredibly tough. Avon and Avon Lake have had a lot of success but the other schools are all competitive and now Elyria is coming into the league. You have to be ready to play every week." Luke Beal, now Midview's coach, brought Fritz onto his staff when he was head coach at Brunswick. He reached out to Fritz when he was still at Akron and Fritz, who was a defensive tackle for the Blue Devils, was a volunteer assistant while still in college. He coached at Highland from 2017-19. "We're really excited about Coach Fritz and the passion and energy he brings to the program," Wolf said. "I know he is really excited for the opportunity." Passerrello, who will continue to teach at Amherst, guided the Comets to a 23-14 record over the past four seasons. The Comets lost to North Royalton in three overtimes in the playoffs to finish 4-3 during this COVID-shortened season in which every team qualified for the postseason. Under Passerrelo, the Comets finished 7-3 in 2018 and '19, barely missing out on the playoffs. Amherst was 6-4 during Passerrello's first season in 2017. The Comets had won only nine games in the six seasons prior to Passerrello moving over from Firelands following the 2016 season. "Coach Passerrello means a lot to the Amherst community and Amherst program," Wolf said. "We are forever grateful for the great job he did in bringing Amherst football program back to its winning ways." "It's been a tough decision but I know what's best for my family," Passerrello told the Chronicle-Telegram of his decision in December. "My kids are just at that age where I need to stop coaching and start being at their games and supporting them." Contact Tim Gebhardt at 329-7135 or at timothygeb@msn.com.