Coaching Pottsville a ‘passion’ for Mike Brennan
Photo by Camille Quirin-Morris
POTTSVILLE — Mike Brennan’s high school football coaching resume is very long and very detailed.
He’s coached at a Class A school (Nativity) and a Class 6A school (Hazleton Area).
He’s guided teams that have faced the best Berks County has to offer while at Blue Mountain and won three straight District 4 Class 3A titles while at Danville.
He’s one of the few area coaches to reach the pinnacle of Pennsylvania high school football, winning two PIAA Class AA titles at Mount Carmel in 2000 and 2002.
It’s a 24-year coaching career that has produced 166 wins, six district titles and two state crowns.
And he’s not finished.
Brennan’s new position as the head football coach at Pottsville has the 55-year-old Nativity graduate recharged and invigorated. Coaching his hometown team was something Brennan had always dreamed of, having grown up just blocks from Veterans Memorial Stadium on Seneca Street. As he enters his first season with the Crimson Tide, Brennan couldn’t hide his excitement as his team went through speed and agility drills earlier this summer.
“It’s really such a passion. It’s not a job for me,” Brennan said. “It’s become such a passion that it’s become my life’s work now. It’s become a seven-day-a-week job for me, just short of an obsession where everything is important.
“Doing this for two and a half decades, I thought I understood. I thought I experienced everything. … But this doesn’t seem to turn off for me. Living in the community, being in the building, being a part of this proud tradition of a football program has been so exciting for me. It certainly has invigorated me. I have more energy and more excitement for football and these kids than I’ve ever had.”
Making his mark
After a stellar playing career at Nativity and as an offensive tackle collegiately at Temple University, Brennan’s first head coaching job came at his alma mater, where he guided the Green Wave to a 7-15 mark over the 1998-99 seasons.
Brennan was then hired to take over the storied program at Mount Carmel, replacing Dave “Whitey” Williams. He inherited a squad that had won PIAA state titles in 1996 and 1998 and lost in the state finals in 1999.
Brennan continued the Red Tornadoes’ string of success, guiding Mount Carmel to a 14-1 record in his first season in 2000 that was capped by a 26-6 victory over Aliquippa in the state final. Two years later the Red Tornadoes were back in Hershey, putting the finishing touches on an unbeaten 15-0 campaign with an 18-13 win over Seton-LaSalle in the PIAA Class AA title game.
Brennan compiled an 86-24 record in his nine seasons at Mount Carmel, directing the Red Tornadoes to a 13-1 record and a District 4 AA title in his final season in 2008. His final game as the Mount Carmel coach was a 41-28 loss to Lancaster Catholic in the PIAA Class AA state quarterfinals.
Looking to work closer to his Schuylkill County roots, Brennan left Mount Carmel for Blue Mountain. He guided the Eagles for four seasons (2009-12), going 22-21 with three playoff appearances. After a year off in 2013, Brennan ventured north to Hazleton Area, where he coached the Cougars for six seasons, going 23-42.
Brennan left Hazleton Area for Danville in 2020. The Ironmen went 28-8 and won three straight District 4 titles under Brennan, going 8-2 in 2020, 8-5 in 2021 and 12-1 in 2022. Danville lost to Wyomissing in the PIAA Class 3A semis in 2020, to Neumann-Goretti in the state quarterfinals in 2021 and 21-19 to Wyomissing in the state quarterfinals in 2022.
Brennan said the lessons learned over the course of his tenures at Nativity, Mount Carmel, Blue Mountain, Hazleton Area and Danville have played dividends already as the head coach at Pottsville.
“This is my 25th year at this point and I feel I have a blueprint for success,” Brennan said. “I’ve learned so much. I’ve developed great relationships.
“I really think I’ve gotten to the point now that I know what’s effective and efficient and what’s counterproductive. That’s really helped me. Just the way I handle people, the way I delegate more often. I’m not afraid to have guys who are talented coaches involved in our program. Guys who understand the game, can take on their own separate role. I’ve learned how to understand how things work for the good of the order. We have a lot of good guys on staff that are going to really be a positive influence on the kids.”
Heading Home
Brennan resigned as Danville’s head coach in February 2023 after accepting a job as the graduation coach at Pottsville Area High School. The full-time teaching position allows Brennan to work with students who are struggling to meet the academic requirements to graduate, providing tutoring, mentoring and accountability.
The move also gave him the opportunity to see his two daughters — Maggie and Rhyan — on a daily basis since they are students at Pottsville. Maggie will be a junior this fall, while Rhyan will be a sophomore. Both girls play volleyball and run track for Pottsville. Mike, his wife Melissa and the two girls live in Norwegian Township.
Brennan decided not to coach football in 2023, taking the year off. That didn’t stop him from going to games, as he said he went to multiple games each weekend. He switched hats from coach to scout/student, taking notes and making key observations along the way.
“That time (off) was a time for me to recharge, to decompress, to learn,” Brennan said. “I did a lot of studying of football. I saw a lot of football games. I saw football practices. I did a lot of things that would allow me to be a better football coach when I returned. That time, that season off, did me a lot of good.”
A good amount of those games and practices involved his new team at Pottsville. He got to know the teenagers he saw every day in the school building perform in an athletic setting, building relationships along the way.
Brennan said that experience was extremely valuable in a few different ways. When the Pottsville head football position opened over the winter, Brennan felt comfortable taking the post. Brennan was hired Feb. 14, 2024, replacing Tom McGeoy, who compiled a 60-59 overall record in 11 seasons, with eight playoff appearances and a District 11 Class 3A title in 2019.
“I was able to watch from a distance. I went to see some of their games. I saw them play in person at home and on the road,” Brennan said. “I was able to build relationships with some of the kids. Even the kids that I didn’t build great relationships with, I was able to observe. I observed them in other sports. I went to a lot of games and took it all in. I got to know the kids, the lay of the land and the culture of the program. That was very helpful to do that for a year.
“When the opportunity was available, it made sense. I did feel somewhat comfortable.”
Building a top-notch staff
Every head coach will tell you that a big key to success is having a good coaching staff. Brennan didn’t want to build a good staff … he wanted to put together a great one.
Brennan lured Tyler Hartranft from Hamburg to be his offensive coordinator, then hired Marty Palm from Danville to guide the defense. Brennan brought in Joe Liptok from Minersville to be the Crimson Tide’s strength and conditioning coach and filled his staff with six former Pottsville players/coaches: Rick Painter, Anthony Kelly, Tyler Heffner, Ian Renninger, Kurt Eroh and Tony Barone.
Hartranft played under Brennan at Blue Mountain, earning county Offensive Player of the Year honors as the Eagles’ quarterback in 2010. The Hawks put up ridiculous offensive numbers in Hartranft’s two seasons as OC, scoring 844 points (36.7 per game), rushing for 4,552 yards (197.9 per game), passing for 4,595 yards (199.8 per game), compiling an average of 397.7 yards of total offense per game and scoring 117 total touchdowns (76 rushing, 41 passing).
Palm and Painter coached previously with Brennan. Kelly played collegiately at Kutztown and had a few tryouts with NFL clubs, while Renninger just graduated from Albany, where he played tight end on a squad that reached the NCAA FCS national semifinals last fall.
In an interview with T102SportsNow.com, Brennan broke down his coaching staff:
“Rick Painter is the assistant head coach. For him, this is a life-long (dream). He worked his entire life to get to this point and come back to where he made his mark as a three-sport athlete. He loves the program, loves the community and is as excited as I am to be here. He’s got tons of experience as a quarterback coach and coached a lot of guys who’ve thrown for more than 2,000 yards and been All-State players. Very calm demeanor for the kids. Very mature. He’s retired, has the time to be committed to this place all the time and he has.
“Tyler Hartranft … there were two things I observed last year going to games. Hamburg, two years ago, Pierce Mason and (Xander) Menapace and those guys were outstanding football players. They averaged 40-some points per game and were right up there with us at Danville as far as some of the best scoring offenses in the state. And then, last year, they’re much younger with much last talent and they still average more than 30 points and 400 yards of offense per game. There’s a reason for that.
“Same thing when I saw Minersville. I saw Minersville play three times last year and I see the physicality of Minersville and how they look physically. Joe Liptok is in control of the weight program at Minersville. There’s a reason why they’re doing that.
“Ian Renninger just went through a six-year clinic at Albany. For him to come here … for a 24-year-old guy, he understands our scheme, he’s a great teacher, he’s a great technician, he’s very thorough.
“Marty Palm is a guy from Danville who I developed a relationship with. He’s one of the brightest guys I know. He’s very meticulous, crosses all his Ts and dots all his Is. He’s into it.
“Anthony Kelly works tirelessly with our kids. He’s worked tirelessly with kids from all over the county trying to develop them and now he’s working tirelessly working with the kids in this program trying to make us the best we can be. We have some very talented receivers that’s he’s tutoring.
“Tyler Heffner is a bright guy, wonderful person. He played quarterback here, started here, coached three sports here, is great with kids. He’s so involved. He’s an outstanding on-field football coach.
“Kurt Eroh has an energy and understanding of our program that goes back 30 years as a player and a coach at all levels of Pottsville football. He is an outstanding defensive line coach who is a great communicator and coaches with tremendous energy.
“Tony Barone has been here … he connects the dots. Does the equipment, works with the special teams, loves Pottsville football, played here as well.”
Over the years, Brennan has learned to delegate more, learned to trust his assistant coaches more, brought in guys who were talented and let them do their thing. That’s the case this season with the Crimson Tide.
“When you look under the hood well enough, you find those guys out there that are really productive and that are really good football coaches and that people buy into what they say,” Brennan said. “I’m at the stage of my career where I try to go out and get every one of those guys and make sure they’re all here in our program.
“The guys we have … there was a lot of thought that went into picking this staff, getting the right guys involved, the right guys to pull the rope in the right direction, together. That’s exactly what we got. I couldn’t be happier with the staff we assembled. We got a really good staff and really bought into what we’re trying to teach and the values we’re trying to instill in these kids.”
Getting started
Brennan and his staff got a late start on the 2024 season, with the Crimson Tide not hitting the weight room until the first week of March. He said his squad of 62 players has worked hard in the weight room, building a new culture.
As part of team-building exercises, the Tide worked hard to clean out the locker room, and significant changes have been made to the coaches’ office and at Veterans Memorial Stadium.
“They’re outstanding kids and they’re hungry,” Brennan said of his squad. “The eye contact from Day 1 was something that stood out with me.
“I’m in the boys’ gym meeting with the kids. I’m down on the floor and they’re up in the bleachers. Every single one of them came in, sat down, put their stuff down, their eyes were on me and they listened. Second meeting was the same.
“We were efficient from the start. Weight room was the same thing. They listened, they learned, they accepted the challenge and they’ve gotten better. We’re here at speed program, they’re getting better.
“Our installation process started in April on Sundays in the little theatre, then we did walk-throughs in the boys’ gym. We didn’t do any on-field stuff because kids were playing spring sports. But we did classroom work and walk-through work. Our attendance was great. Kids picked things up quickly. We did that for five sessions in April.
“We had six sessions of spring practice where we on the field and running inside drill, running the “skelly,” doing all the things we had to do to become a good football team. Going into Memorial Day, we felt really good about where we were and what we had in.
“We have some very talented kids, some very hard workers, some very hungry kids. We still have a lot to learn and we have a long way to go. Outstanding young men, they really are. They’re among the elite of any I’ve ever coached in terms of their work ethic, their focus and their pride in the program.”
After scrimmaging Mount Carmel on Saturday, Aug. 17, Pottsville opens its season Friday, Aug. 23, at Shamokin Area, a squad Brennan is really familiar with from his days at Mount Carmel and Danville. The Indians return All-State selections Blake Hockenbroch and Chase Pensyl from last year’s club that went 5-6 and lost to Fleetwood in the Eastern Conference Class 4A championship game.
The Tide jump right into their Schuylkill/Colonial Division I schedule after that, with a home game against Jim Thorpe in Week 2 followed by another home game against Tamaqua on Sept. 6. Games with Bangor, Southern Lehigh, Lehighton, Northwestern Lehigh and Wilson are then followed by games at backyard rivals Blue Mountain and North Schuylkill to close the regular season.
“We know that they’re talented. They have really good skilled kids,” Brennan said of Shamokin. “They’re very talented. We know what we’re in for when we go there. We have to be on top of our game. We feel it’s going to be a game of conditioning and of who is more disciplined. We have to do things the right way. We have to make sure we put ourselves in position to win the game in the second half because they’re a physical bunch. They’re scrappy. That’s not a game you’re going to win in the first half.
“That’s a very big challenge on the road right off the bat. We feel like the Mount Carmel scrimmage will help us prepare for that because of their physicality. We know what we’re going to get there. We’re not looking any further than that.”
Making an impression
As they sat at Wednesday’s 21st annual Schuylkill County Football Coaches Association Media Day, Pottsville’s four representatives spoke highly of their new coach.
