Football

CHAD GARRISON

HEAD COACH

Coach Chad Garrison begins his third year as the Head Football Coach at St. Pius X. In 2022, the Golden Lions finished the year with a 6 – 6 record, were the Region 4 AAAAAA Runner-up, and had a final top 15 ranking in 6A. In 2021, Coach Garrison was chosen as the Region 5-5A Coach of the Year and was fortunate to have five players make the Georgia Athletic Coaches Association All-State Football Team (Jacob Hull – OL, Shug Bentley – LB, Jack Kelly – DL, Austin Taylor – DB & Jack Tchienchou – Defensive Player of the Year). The 2023-2024 school year will mark Coach Garrison’s 33rd year in education and 24th year at St. Pius X. Prior to becoming the head coach, he was the offensive line coach for the Golden Lions from 2001 – 2020. He also begins his 21st year as the Physical Education Department Chair and 14th as an Assistant Athletic Director. From 2015 through 2021 Coach Garrison led the Golden Lions Baseball program finishing with a 98-80 record and a 5A – Final Four appearance and #3 overall ranking in 2021. Previously he also served as the Head Track & Field coach from 2006 – 2011. His teams won the Boys and Girls State Championship in 2006 and had multiple State Runner-up finishes & Region Championships. He was named the Track & Field Coach of the year by the Atlanta Track Club and the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Coach Garrison grew up in Dekalb County, attending Redan High School where he played soccer, football and wrestled. He graduated from North Georgia College in 1990 and his previous teaching / coaching stops include Campbell High School and The Lovett School. He and his wife of 35 years, Barbara have three children: Kelci (SPX 2009), Mackenzie (SPX 2013), and Brennan, (SPX 2016).

JIM WALSH

CO-OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR, OFFENSIVE LINE

Coach Walsh enters his 35th year coaching high school athletics and his 38th year overall in Coaching. This will be his 3rd year as the offensive line coach for the Golden Lions. In his 35 years at the high school level, 25 were as Head Coach, 6 years at Johnson High School in Savannah, Georgia, and 19 years as the Head Coach at Bradwell Institute in Hinesville, Georgia combining for 141 wins. He spent one year as Coordinator and Offensive line coach at Luella and 7 years as Offensive Line Coach at Peachtree Ridge. At Bradwell Institute, Coach Walsh also served as the Athletic Director for 19 years. Coach Walsh is a graduate of the University of South Carolina where he was a 4-year letterman and a 3-year starter for the Gamecocks, He earned player of week 4 times vs. Cincinnati (Soph.), vs. Georgia and Florida State (Jr.) and vs. Duke (Sr.). Coach Walsh also earned the Coaches Award as a junior and Best Lineman his senior year. Coach Walsh was the strongest player on the team as a Jr. and Sr. He and his wife of 39 years, Rebecca have two children; Jake (Katie) daughter Rylan, son James and son Owen; Erin (Joey) Gregos daughter Lily and son Leo.

CHUCK LANDY

DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR (SECONDARY)

Coach Landy begins his 5th year at St. Pius and his 43rd year as a teacher and coach.  He teaches physical education at St. Jude.  Coach Landy was born and raised in Pittsburgh, PA and was a graduate of Slippery Rock University (1981) and a member of the football team.  He holds a Master’s Degree from Valdosta State University (1991). Coach Landy was at Heritage High School for over 25 years where he served as Football, Track, Swimming, and Tennis Coach, as well as Athletic Director.  He has been extremely fortunate to have worked with some outstanding people and coached some great players over the years.  He has been a part of State Championship, Final Four, and Region Championship teams.  Coach Landy and his wife, Susan (Fritts) Landy, from Savannah, have been married 33 years.  Their son, Zachary, graduated from Wofford College and played tennis. In 2020, they welcomed their daughter-in-law, Anna, to the family.  Emerson Ruth Landy was born in November 2021.  Very quickly, Emerson has become the star of the Landy family.

MIKE LANCASTER

LINEBACKERS

Coach Lancaster begins his 4th year of coaching this season (2023). A native Atlantan, Coach Lancaster has spent his entire career in the metropolitan Atlanta area, coaching in Rockdale, Dekalb, and Gwinnett counties, retiring from Gwinnett County Public Schools in 2014. He has been a member of the SPX football staff since the 2010 season, as well as the SPX baseball program since the 2011 campaign. Upon his retirement, Coach Lancaster took over the SPX wrestling program during the 2014-15 season and was inducted into the Georgia Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2021. Coach Lancaster and his wife, Lisa, have been married 43 years and have two children, Marc and Laura, and have five grandchildren.

ETHAN VENOSA

SECONDARY/CO-SPECIAL TEAMS COORDINATOR

Coach Venosa is in his 4th season coaching for the Golden Lions. He will continue working as both a Defensive Backs Coach as well as Special Teams Coordinator during the 2023 season. Additionally this season he will be taking on the role of JV Head Coach. Coach Venosa is also an Assistant Coach on the SPX Wrestling Team and has been since 2020.  Originally from Rochester, NY, Coach Venosa participated in both Football and Wrestling for Victor High School. After graduating from Victor High School in 2013 he attended Cornell University, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Biological Engineering. For the duration of his time at Cornell, Coach Venosa competed as an All-Ivy League Rugby Player. He graduated from Cornell in 2017 and moved to Florida, where he completed a Master’s Degree in Biomechanics at the University of Central Florida. Coach Venosa continued his Rugby career at UCF, where he was an All-Conference selection and helped lead the team to a National Semi-Finals appearance. He also wrestled on the Central Florida Wrestling Team. Coach Venosa currently lives in Peachtree Corners, GA and works for the Biomechanics company S3D Sidekick. He has been married to his wife Darby (SPX ’14) since January 2022.

MARK ADAMS

DEFENSIVE LINE

Mark Adams enters his 4th season with the Golden Lions. Prior to joining the staff at St. Pius X, Coach Adams spent 30 years in public schools as a teacher and coach including stints as Head Coach at Cross Keys, Avondale and Druid Hills High Schools. In 2012, Coach Adams was chosen by his peers to be Head Coach of the Dekalb County East All-Star squad. Coach Adams is the son of Louise Adams and the late L. Richard Adams, both of Quincy MA. He was raised in Chamblee GA and is a 1990 Graduate of Georgia Southern University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Education. Mark is married to the former Elizabeth Caraker of Doraville GA. Together, they share 6 children including sons Nick (31), Blake (30), Rett (28) and Sam (25) and daughters Brooke (28) and Sarah (21).

JON OSNOWITZ

RUNNING BACKS

Jon Osnowitz is entering his 2nd year on the St. Pius X coaching staff, and will be working with the “A” backs.  He comes from recent stopovers at Brookwood in 2021 where he was a part of a region championship and advanced to the 3rd round of the state playoffs.  Prior to this he was at Paulding County H.S. as linebacker coach and special teams coach. Coach Osnowitz spent a season as defensive coordinator for Occidental College in Los Angeles California. Taking a couple of years in private business, Coach Osnowitz would return to the gridiron in a few high schools in Georgia including stops at Osborne, Lithia Springs and Forest Park before joining Coach Kyle Hockman at Campbell. In 11 seasons at McEachern, he helped the Indians to win 5 region titles as well as advance to the 4th round of the state playoffs on 3 separate occasions.  As the son of a high school football coach, Coach Osnowitz played from 1974—1978 as a wide receiver and defensive back at Perrysburg High School in Northwest Ohio. After high school, he just couldn’t get football out of his system and decided to pursue a student assistant position while an undergraduate at Ohio State. This afforded him an opportunity to work with and learn from present-day coaching giants like Pete Carroll, Jim Tressel and Nick Saban while helping to coordinate travel and make sure that practices ran smoothly. Coach Osnowitz was able to travel with the Buckeyes to the Liberty Bowl in 1981, the Holiday Bowl in 1982 and the Fiesta Bowl in 1984. He is married to Jeanne Bynum Hipes who is a successful lawyer in the John’s Creek area.  Coach Osnowitz is the father to two children, Sylvia (35) a nurse and Sean (30) who is a wide receiver coach at Adrian College. He is a grandfather to Emily who is 7 years old and Gabriel who is 5.  During the school day, Coach Osnowitz works in study support.

LARRY MOYER

WIDE RECEIVERS

Coach Moyer is a Miami, FL native and begins his 3rd year at St. Pius X. Coach Moyer brings 17 years of coaching experience with him. Coach Moyer is in the Physical Education Department at St. Pius X, and teaches Health and Wellness.  Prior to St. Pius X, Larry spent 3 seasons (2018-2020) at Berkmar High School in Lilburn, GA as the Co-Offensive Coordinator, and teaching in Special Education. In 2017, Coach Moyer and his family moved to Georgia from Miami, FL where he spent 12 years coaching. He served as a Head Coach 3 of those years. During his time as a Head Coach, Coach Moyer led Archbishop Coleman Carroll Catholic High School (2015) and Pinecrest Preparatory Middle High School (2016) to South Florida Independent Football Conference championships. In his 12 years of coaching in Florida, his teams qualified for the FHSAA playoffs 9 of those years and reached State quarterfinals once. During those years, Coach Moyer had 36 players go and play college football, with 5 currently playing professionally (4 in the NFL and 1 in the CFL). His early years of coaching consisted of stints at Miami Sunset Senior High School (2006-2009) and Miami Killian Senior High School (2010-2014). Larry has served as a QB, RB,WR, and Offensive Coordinator before becoming a Head Coach in 2015 at Archbishop Coleman Carroll Catholic High School. Coach Moyer was also Head Coach at Pinecrest Preparatory Middle High School (2016) and Miami Community Charter School (2017).   Larry received his Bachelor’s degree in Sports Management and Recreation from The University of Arizona and is currently enrolled at the University of West Georgia pursuing a Masters in Special Education.  Larry and his wife Valerie have been married for 12 years and have one daughter, Ella (6). The Moyers reside in Johns Creek, GA.

BLAISE WANNEMACHER

OFFENSIVE CONSULTANT AND FRESHMEN ASSISTANT

Coach Wannemacher started coaching at St. Pius X in 2009. This will be his third year with the varsity staff and will return to assist the freshmen team. Coach Wannemacher coached with the freshman team for the first 12 years while on staff. Coach Wannemacher is a 2006 graduate of St. Pius where he played football, basketball and baseball. Coach Wannemacher has also coached baseball, basketball and soccer, and works as the Director of Operations at St. Pius X. He is married to Lisette Buechner Wannemacher, who also graduated from St. Pius in 2006 and they have three children, Pace (9), Palmer (7) and Annie (4).

CAMDEN WOODEN

DEFENSIVE LINE

Coach Wooden graduated in the class of 2021 from St. Pius X, here he played football for the Golden Lions all four years. He was three year Varsity Starter as both a Defensive Tackle and Offensive Guard. In 2021 he was selected as Class 5A 1st Team All State player at the Guard position. This will be his 3rd year coaching at Pius and his 2 year coaching full time at his alma mater. Coach Wooden is furthering his education at Georgia State University, majoring in Sports Administration.

BOBBY HAYES

STRENGTH & CONDITIONING COACH

Coach Hayes enters his second season at St. Pius X, after spending one year as the Head Strength Coach and Head Wrestling coach at the Mt. Vernon School in Sandy Springs. Prior to his time at Mt. Vernon, Coach Hayes spent 16 years, from 2005-2021, serving as the Assistant Director of Strength and Conditioning at The Westminster Schools of Atlanta. While at Westminster, Coach Hayes aided the Wildcats in winning 107 State championships as well as 15 Director’s Cup Trophies, and in 2016 the MAX Preps Cup, which is given to the best overall athletic program in the county was awarded to their athletic department. In addition to working in the weight room, Coach Hayes also served as the head wrestling coach at Westminster from 2008-2018, amassing 100 dual meet victories and coaching over 25 All-State wrestlers. He was named region Coach of the year for 3 consecutive years from 2013-2015. In 2005 Coach Hayes served as a Senior Sports Performance Coach for Velocity Sports Performance in Roswell, while at Velocity, he worked in the NFL Draft Preparation program, training recent college graduates for a career in the NFL, this group included multiple players drafted in the 2005 NFL Draft. Before his time in the private sector, Coach Hayes served as Strength and Conditioning Intern at the Univerity of Alabama in 2004, where he worked with the Crimson Tide’s football team, as well as their men’s and women’s basketball programs. Coach Hayes is a native of the Atlanta area, having graduated from Campbell High School in Smyrna in 2000. He holds a BS in Exercise Science from Valdosta State University and is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist as recognized by the National Strength and Conditioning Association. Coach Hayes and his wife Jessica have been married for 12 years and they live in Powder Springs with their two children Dalton (10), and Gretchen (8).

GARY SCHMITT

ATHLETIC TRAINER

Coach Schmitt, a certified athletic trainer, is in his 22st year as the St. Pius X Athletic Trainer. Before coming to St. Pius X, Gary worked with world-renowned orthopedic surgeon James Andrews in Birmingham, Alabama. He has also worked preseason camps with the Atlanta Falcons. Originally from Wisconsin, Coach Schmitt earned his Bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh and then moved south to earn his Master’s degree at Eastern Kentucky University. He currently works as the medical observer for the ACC and covers all home Georgia Tech football games. He is married to Sara Geiger Schmitt. Sara is the Director of Enrollment and is the head girl’s soccer coach at St. Pius X Catholic High School.

LASHONDA PITUK

ATHLETIC TRAINER

Coach “Shonda” begins her fourth year with the Golden Lions athletic program. She is a certified athletic trainer in the Sports Medicine department at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.  Coach Shonda graduated from Georgia State University with a B.S. in Exercise Science and Temple University with an M.S. in Athletic Training. She previously worked with women’s lacrosse at the University of Pennsylvania and men and women’s basketball at Temple before coming to St. Pius X.  When she is away from campus, you can find her providing medical care at various local youth sporting events or eating out at different restaurants!  Coach Shonda is originally from Atlanta, where she attended North Atlanta High School. She is a member of the National Athletic Trainers’ Association and the American College of Sports Medicine.

JIMMY HEATH

SIDELINE COORDINATOR

Mr Heath is the proud father of two St. Pius X graduates: Hillary 2009 and Abbie 2012. Jimmy got involved with the football team when his daughter Abbie became a student athletic trainer. His passion for the game of football and the St.Pius X football family and community keeps him involved year after year. This will be his 16th year working with the football team and the sports medicine staff. He is also proud to welcome a new addition to the St. Pius X family this year, his granddaughter Bridget.

BILL MEAGHER

ANNOUNCER

Bill Meagher takes over as our PA announcer this year following the retirement of Dennis Kelly. Bill is no stranger to St. Pius X fans, as he has assisted with the football announcing for several years & has been our Varsity Boys & Girls Basketball PA announcer for the last 15 seasons. Bill is a 1976 Graduate of St. Pius X & both of Bill’s daughters graduated from St. Pius X. Bill’s wife Betsy is a realtor with Atlanta Fine Homes & was very active on the Home & School Committee while their daughters attended St. Pius X.

RICK SCHEFF

STATISTICIAN

Mr. Scheff is in his second decade of helping out with the statistics for the Golden Lions football program. In addition to working with St. Pius X football, Mr. Scheff is the chief football statistician and basketball shot clock operator for Georgia Tech, his alma mater. He is employed as an airline consultant with Seabury Airline Planning Group and likes to unwind by riding his bicycle. Mr. Scheff and his wife, Maria, are parents of three St. Pius X graduates, Rick, Anthony and Veronika, as well as a younger son, Yegor.

RALPH WRIGHT

RUNNING BACKS / LINEBACKERS

Coach Wright has been teaching math for 40 years and is in his first year of coaching football at St. Pius X.  Hfore played football at UCLA in the late 70’s.  He has been married 44 years, and is the father of 5 daughters, all college grads. He is the proud grandfather to 11 grandchildren.

DAVID COLEMAN

DEFENSIVE LINE

Coach Coleman is in his first year of coaching football at St. Pius X