NUTLEY — Not many high school football head coaches can say they were able to coach at their alma mater and lead the team to a state championship game.
Not many coaches can also say that they led their alma mater to an undefeated season in their final year of coaching.
Steve DiGregorio was able to experience and cherish those special thrills.
Affectionately known as “Coach D,” DiGregorio, a true Nutley High School Raider at heart, died on Oct. 12 after a courageous two-year battle with cancer. He was 60.
In his seventh year as the NHS head coach, DiGregorio led the Raiders to the NJSIAA North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3, championship game in 2010 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford. It was the first year of the stadium, which was then called New Meadowlands Stadium.
Though the Raiders lost to Morristown on that cold, late Saturday afternoon to end a strong 8-4 season, it had to be a special thrill for DiGregorio, an NHS graduate, Class of 1979, to lead his alma mater to the biggest game. It was the team’s first appearance in a state championship game since 1995. It was only the fifth and last time the Raiders have been to a state championship game under the current state format that began in 1974.
After serving as head football coach and athletic director at Paramus Catholic, DiGregorio, who was a lineman and team captain for the Raiders in his senior year, returned to his alma mater in 2004 to become the head coach. He also became a teacher of U.S. government at the school. He previously coached at Princeton University, where he mentored Jason Garrett, the former Princeton quarterback, former Dallas Cowboys head coach and current New York Giants offensive coordinator. DiGregorio also coached current Princeton University head football coach Bob Surace. DiGregorio was living in Princeton — where he had lived, along with his family, for many years — at the time of his death.
In 2009, the Raiders were one game away from reaching the North Jersey, Section 2, Group 3, final, but lost to West Morris, which was led by future NFL fullback Michael Burton, at Tangorra Field/Park Oval. But the following year, the Raiders gained a measure of redemption as they made an inspiring run in the postseason, winning road games against Colonia and Rahway to reach the title game for the first time in 15 years.
The next year, the Raiders lost at Parsippany Hills in the first round of the playoffs. DiGregorio stepped down at the end of that season, handing the reins to his assistant coach, Tom Basile. DiGregorio came back for his second stint with the Raiders, succeeding Basile, in 2017.
In 2019, DiGregorio was diagnosed with cancer. While DiGregorio was receiving treatment, JD Vick, his longtime assistant coach, served as interim head coach. But DiGregorio remained involved with the Raiders. He was honored at a home game against Lincoln, with his wife of 30 years, Nadia, and their three sons, Zack, Aaron and Derek, by his side. The Raiders won the game, 27-7, as DiGregorio was triumphantly carried off the field by his players.
DiGregorio came back to coach the Raiders in 2020 while Vick went back to being one of his assistants. Despite the challenges of the season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Raiders completed their season with a 6-0 record. Due to the pandemic, there was no postseason.
It was the fourth unbeaten season in program history and the first since 1939. The program began in 1919.
DiGregorio retired as head coach in March 2021, finishing with 62 career wins at the NHS helm, which ranks second all-time in the program. Vick was then named the head coach.
“Coach D will be missed by all that knew him, and that is a lot of people,” stated Vick, an Alabama native who was grateful to DiGregorio for selecting him to be on the Raiders coaching staff. “Never knew anyone who knew more people than he did. You could not be around Coach D and not be impacted by him. He was a very good teacher, great coach, a true friend, and a loving husband and father.
“You wanted him in your corner. He would fight for you,” continued Vick. “His impact on Nutley will be felt for years to come. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his wonderful family.”
DiGregorio was an inspiration to countless people, on and off the field.
Bob Searle graduated with DiGregorio at NHS. They were also teammates for the Raiders. Like DiGregorio, Searle was a lineman.
“He was such a selfless guy,” said Searle of DiGregorio. “That was his focus. His mother and father and sister were the same type of people. His mother would pack us all in their house and feed the whole football team. They were just nice people, and they passed it on to him. He was one of the nicest guys I’ve ever met. It was never about him, even when he was sick. He always had a smile on his face. He kept going. He never really talked about himself and his accomplishments; he was more excited about everybody else’s accomplishments.”
Searle’s nephew, Billy Searle, played for DiGregorio and was an all-state lineman for the Raiders, graduating in June 2021. Billy Searle is a freshman at Wilkes University in Pennsylvania, where he is continuing his football career as an offensive lineman.
For DiGregorio, completing a season undefeated was a great way to end his career. Coach D, a true Raider at heart, went out a winner. In the hearts and minds of the Raider community, his legacy will live on forever.
Photo Courtesy of Bob Park
DiGregorio’s legacy as a Raider will live on forever added by Joe Ragozzino on
View all posts by Joe Ragozzino →