With youth and experience, Pidgeon ready for Penncrest
It’s a testament to his drive and work ethic that Andrew Pidgeon has coached high school, college and professional football players.
He’s only 25 years old.
After his senior season at Ridley in 2008, the All-Delco quarterback was slated to continue his playing career at Kutztown, but Pidgeon had other aspirations. Even as a teenager, Pidgeon’s passion was for coaching.
“I knew that this is what I wanted to do my senior year of high school,” he said.
Pidgeon was an undergraduate assistant at Kutztown for four years. He then earned an internship with the Lehigh Steel Hawks, a professional indoor football organization, and worked his way up to assistant coach.
After his stint in Lehigh, Pidgeon returned to the Central League, where he was an assistant at Lower Merion from 2014-15. He was named offensive coordinator of BJ Hogan’s staff at Cardinal O’Hara for the 2016 season. In 2017, he’ll be somewhere else.
Pending school board approval, Pidgeon will be the next head coach at Penncrest. He replaces Rick Stroup, who resigned last month after six seasons.
Pidgeon is the youngest head football coach in Delaware County.
“I kind of told myself that every move that I make will be towards getting myself in a position like this,” Pidgeon said. “I would be lying if I said I wouldn’t be surprised if it happened this quickly. I am 25, I know I’m young, but I did a lot of things to put myself in this position. A lot of sacrifice and a lot of time.”
One of Pidgeon’s biggest mentors is his former Ridley coach, John Waller, who always encouraged Pidgeon in his coaching endeavors.
“I actually just got off the phone with him about an hour ago, so we do keep in touch very often,” Pidgeon said. “One of the big things he always said to me, he challenged me before my senior year to be All-Delco.
“It was a big challenge. I wasn’t necessarily as gifted as (Ridley All-Delco quarterback) Steve Egee. I just worked my butt off … and he would always say to push yourself and work hard and you’ll see the results. He told that story to me again today and said that he’s not as surprised as some people. That means a lot.”
Under Waller’s tutelage in ‘08, Pidgeon guided the Green Raiders to a 10-win season and the quarterfinals of the District One Class 4A playoffs. He passed for 1,646 yards and 23 touchdowns while leading the county with an efficiency rating of 146.99.
Pidgeon is grateful for the year spent coaching under Hogan. With Pidgeon as the offensive coordinator, the Lions finished 10-1 and captured a Catholic League division championship for the first time since 2004.
“What I really took away from (Hogan) was how he brought the college mindset to high school, which he does an incredible job with at O’Hara,” Pidgeon said. “It’s a special place to play and to coach. It was very apparent, you see it pretty clearly how he runs a program differently than a lot of high school teams do.”
Pidgeon will implement the spread offense at Penncrest, a system he has taught since his college years. While the Lions had only one winning season under Stroup, athletic director Chip Olinger was proud of the work Stroup did to reinvigorate interest and participation in the program.
Pidgeon remembers how good the Penncrest teams were back when he was in high school and believes the Lions have the potential to reach those heights under his direction.
“You definitely see the enthusiasm,” Pidgeon said. “It’s a town that wants to win. They still get good crowds and the town loves their football. I know firsthand that there are football players at Penncrest. The biggest thing, my goal going forward, is to recruit in the hallways and in the feeder programs and to do what I can to build from the bottom up.
“Penncrest has a lot of excitement for football and the administration is very supportive. It’s an exciting place to be.”
