My first journey to Pottsville came in 1978 when my alma mater played the Crimson Tide for an Eastern Conference football title.
Pottsville won that game 7-0 on a 65-yard fullback dive play and was solidified when an official ruled a GAR receiver was out of bounds in the back corner of the end zone on a potential game-tying touchdown catch.
I still have a bitter taste in my mouth from that cold, blustery day because of those two plays.
I returned to Pottsville more than a decade later during football’s preseason because Pottsville joined the Wyoming Valley Conference, which housed teams from the Wilkes-Barre and Hazleton areas.
I pulled into the parking lot that overlooked Veterans Memorial Stadium, and the rush of emotion from that day in 1978 came flooding back.
It was on that day in the early 1990s when I met Kevin Keating, Pottsville’s head coach. He invited my colleague and friend Doyle Dietz and I to lunch in the school cafeteria after a practice to talk about that year’s Crimson Tide team.
Keating and Dietz knew each other for years because Dietz covered coal region football among other things at the Reading Eagle newspaper. Dietz and I knew each other from the same beat.
That lunch with Keating was my first experience outside my comfort zone, where I grew up. But Keating quickly made me feel at home.
Keating didn’t talk football on that day until well after lunch. He turned the tables on me, the young reporter, by asking a lot of questions. He wanted to know me. He also wanted to know where the best pizza places were in the Wilkes-Barre area so he and his staff would have something to look forward to on scouting trips.
Keating loved to talk about football, but I quickly learned that he also loved to talk about teaching and his family. He taught English literature at his alma mater. His joy came from connecting with his students, helping them reach their potential and find their passion in life. Nothing pained him more than seeing a student fall short or make a mistake in life. He took it as a personal failure.
He and his wife, Teresa, raised three children — sons Kevin and Patrick and daughter Alicia. He coached his two sons and often was concerned about strains that would have on their relationship at home.
Former Pottsville football coach Kevin Keating passed away last Thursday at age 70. (Pottsville Republican file photo)
Keating eventually talked about the Crimson Tide’s prospects for that season.
The trek down Interstate 81 became an August tradition. I looked forward to covering games in Pottsville’s unique press box. I never looked at Veterans Memorial Stadium the same way I did in 1978. All of that was because of Keating.
We became friends during that first lunch interview. Postgame interviews never lasted as long as the conversations that followed about our families and school.
To the surprise of no one who knew Keating, he was a successful football coach. He won 166 games and made 15 playoff appearances in his 24 years at Pottsville. The Crimson Tide won three Eastern Conference titles, three District 11 Class 3A championships and reached two PIAA finals.
Keating also coached at Lafayette College under head coach Frank Tavani and finished his coaching career at Shenandoah Valley.
Keating passed away last Thursday at age 70.
Many who played football or stepped in an English literature classroom at Pottsville or had the chance to have lunch with Keating lost a dear friend.
I know I will feel a void the next time I go to Veterans Memorial Stadium, and it will have nothing to do with the time my alma mater left without a championship trophy.
Senior writer Tom Housenick can be reached at thousenick@mcall.com
Colonial-Schuylkill League football Week 6 stat heroes
(in alphabetical order)
Faustie Capobianco, Notre Dame-GP: Rushed for a career-high 99 yards and two touchdowns and made 11 tackles in a victory over Northern Lehigh.
Rory Dixon, Marian Catholic: Rushed for 82 yards, made six tackles and intercepted two passes against Minersville.
Chris Frame, Northern Lehigh: Ran for 105 yards and two touchdowns and caught three passes for 62 yards against Notre Dame-GP.
Elijah Garriga, Salisbury: Registered a team-high 10 tackles against Pen Argyl.
Lucas Hurd, Bangor: Made nine tackles and intercepted a pass against Tamaqua.
J’son Johnson, Wilson: Rushed for 99 yards and made six tackles against Palmerton.
Alex Keiper, Palmerton: Registered seven tackles and intercepted two passes in a victory over Wilson.
Michael Lagowy, Northwestern Lehigh: Caught seven passes for 85 yards and a score, made four tackles and intercepted two passes in a victory over North Schuylkill.
Braxton Lakatosh, Northwestern Lehigh: Rushed for 119 yards and one touchdown, made 13 tackles, including one for loss, and intercepted a pass against North Schuylkill.
Jayse Lawrence, Lehighton: Completed 13 of 16 passes for 148 yards and three touchdowns in a win over Pottsville.
Cole Lazorick, Jim Thorpe: Threw for 266 yards and a touchdown and ran for three more against Southern Lehigh.
Terrell McDowell, Tamaqua: Had 31 carries for 188 yards and a touchdown in a win over Bangor.
Braden Rohn, Saucon Valley: Threw for 332 yards and three touchdowns and ran for 83 yards and three TDs in a victory over Catasauqua.
Mason Soos, Pen Argyl: Completed 14 of 21 passes for 150 yards and a touchdown and ran for 91 yards and a score in a win over Salisbury.
Sean Steckert, Southern Lehigh: The Lehigh Valley Chapter of the National Football Foundation’s Week 5 player of the week rushed for 320 yards and three touchdowns and caught two passes for 22 yards in a win over Jim Thorpe.
Vince Taglieri, Palmerton: Ran for 108 yards and two TDs, caught four passes for 73 yards and another score against Wilson.
Jack Trickel, Palisades: Completed 14 of 19 passes for 154 yards and two touchdowns, rushed for 70 yards and made six tackles against Blue Mountain.
Senior writer Tom Housenick can be reached at thousenick@mcall.com
https://www.mcall.com/2025/09/30/pottsvilles-kevin-keating-always-was-more-than-a-football-coach/
