By BRIAN TORTELLA
Correspondent
@tortreports on Instagram
Brian Leary wasn’t sure if he would ever have the urge to lead a high school football program again.
After a successful run as the head coach at Highland Regional ended when he retired from teaching in 2024, there was a chance the longtime coach was content with what he had accomplished.
But if you know Leary, then you know he couldn’t stay away from the game for long.
“At the time, I wasn’t really sure,” Leary said of returning to the gridiron. “I was finishing my teaching career and at the time I had a great career. I enjoyed coaching. I sat out for a year, and I got the itch back.”
After taking a backseat for a year as the offensive coordinator at Collingswood under head coach Mike McKeown, he realized his days as a program leader weren’t behind him by any stretch.
Leary was named the new head football coach at Williamstown at the end of last year, a program that has had a long history of storied success. He replaced Frank Fucetola, who was on his second of two stints at the Monroe Township school.
His first season at the helm has proved to be quite successful thus far. The Braves own a 5-2 record through seven games, which is their highest win total in five years — when they finished 5-6 in 2021. Williamstown hasn’t had a winning season since the 2020 campaign, when the Braves finished 7-2.
“The wins and losses take care of themselves. The bigger thing is to get the kids to buy in and create a culture that you’re satisfied with, and have high character kids,” Leary said. “I think they’ve done a great job with buying into us as a new staff. I tell them all the time that we play extremely hard, and I’m proud of that more than anything.”
A 1987 Paul VI graduate, Leary earned his bachelor’s in business from William Paterson University in 1992. He spent his entire teaching career at Bell Oaks Middle School in Bellmawr while spending time as an assistant at Triton. He compiled a 52-40 record across nine seasons as the head coach at Highland from 2015 to 2024.
“Coach Leary and I have been great friends for a long time. When he started talking about getting the itch to coach again, my main goal was to talk him into being my offense coordinator,” McKeown said of recruiting Leary to Collingswood. “His knowledge of the game is second to none, but he is a great relationship builder with his players. As soon as he arrived our offense got better.
“He promised me he would be here for a while so I am still upset about it — just kidding. Williamstown hit a home run with hiring coach Leary, and I wish him nothing but the best. We still talk almost every day and I still use his verbiage in our offense. Go Braves!”
After opening the season 1-2, Leary’s Braves have caught fire, ripping off four straight victories. The last two have been especially impressive: a 15-14 win over Kingsway on Oct. 2, secured by a game-saving stop on a two-point conversion, followed by a 33-6 rout of Delsea this past Friday — a team that defeated Williamstown last season.
“Coach Leary coming over here has been a fresh start for us seniors,” said four-year starting receiver/defensive back Kysheem Prunty. “The last couple of years have been hectic with the coaching situation and everything. As soon as he came in here, he set the foundation for what it’s going to be. The seniors brought it, and everything has been going well.”
Williamstown will end its regular season with two home matchups, against Northern Burlington on Friday at 6, followed by a meeting with Eastern on Oct. 22. Currently, the Braves rank No. 6 in the South Jersey Group 5 power point standings.
If Williamstown can finish on a strong note, the Braves can potentially host their first playoff game since Nov. 6, 2020. The first round is slated to begin on Oct. 30.
“I enjoy the relationship with the kids and being a part of a community and a school,” Leary said of being back in the game. “This is a great community that certainly supports their sports programs. We’ve had a lot of support, both home and away. I’m really happy that I made the decision to come back.”
