Welcome to Cougar Country

The 2011 football season was a memorable one for Drew Lascari. Then the offensive coordinator for national powerhouse Don Bosco Prep, in Ramsey, N.J., Lascari coached a team that enjoyed both an undefeated season and a national championship.

But a hard-fought victory over the Manatee Hurricanes stands out. 

“Those were some of the most talented and toughest players I had seen,” Lascari says. “I knew then that there was talent in the Sarasota-Bradenton area.” 

Lascari will work directly with the pool of talent he recognized years ago as Cardinal Mooney’s new head football coach.

In his first head coaching position, Lascari replaces former head coach Josh Smithers, who is now an assistant at Riverview. Lascari wants to incorporate the knowledge he gained at Don Bosco:

“Toughness is a teachable trait. The most important thing is putting them in as many competitive situations as possible on a daily basis and letting them learn how to win and respond to losing.”

– Drew Lascari

 

“Toughness is a teachable trait,” he says. “The most important thing is putting them in as many competitive situations as possible on a daily basis and letting them learn how to win and respond to losing.”

“I saw how a top-notch organization is run, from the classroom, to meetings, to the weight room, to fundraising,” Lascari says. 

A native of New Jersey, Lascari’s father, Roland, was the team physician for the local high school, and his older brother, Matt, played wide receiver. 

Lascari played quarterback at Pequannock Township before going on to the State University of New York at Cortland, where he transitioned to wide receiver. 

After graduating in 2006 with a bachelor’s degree in health sciences with a concentration in pre-dentistry, Lascari began training players part time while studying for the Dental Admission Test. 

Soon, he questioned whether he still wanted to be a dentist.

“I got such pleasure and exhilaration out of (training those players) that it started to make me wonder what to do with my life,” Lascari says. 

Lascari had been working with Don Bosco Prep Ironmen coach Greg Toal, who in 2010 hired Lascari as an assistant coach. 

In March, Lascari visited his parents in Lakewood Ranch and drove past Cardinal Mooney. After his visit, Lascari learned the head coaching position at Cardinal Mooney was open, so he applied and was soon hired.

He won’t be able to relocate for a few weeks, but he plans to have his full coaching staff in place next week, which he hopes will include his brother, who is wide receivers coach at Don Bosco. 

“It’s incredibly special to be coaching with my brother every day,” Lascari says. “It’s always been a dream of ours.”