Dan Bradley resigns as OLSH football coach after reaching WPIAL finals

By: Chris Harlan
Thursday, January 6, 2022 | 1:59 PM

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Weeks after leading Our Lady of the Sacred Heart to the WPIAL finals, Dan Bradley resigned as Chargers football coach after six seasons.

His teams went 49-19, reached the playoffs every year and won a WPIAL title in 2018.

“To be honest, I feel like I was pretty lucky to have him this long,” OLSH athletic director Michael McDonald said. “For the last three or four years, I have fielded calls from other schools, other booster groups, who have inquired, interviewed and spoken to him. If you’re a good coach, you’re going to be in demand.”

McDonald said Bradley is a candidate elsewhere. Bradley couldn’t be reached for comment.

“Whether that is or isn’t the main reason, he just felt like he needed a change,” McDonald said. “If he would have wanted to return here, we would have gladly had him.”

Bradley talked with OLSH players Thursday.

OLSH went 9-4 this past season and finished as the WPIAL runner-up in Class A. However, the team finished third in the Big Seven Conference and dealt with some hardships along the way, including a small roster.

The team had around 22 players for most games.

“It was a tough year,” McDonald said. “I think this year was one of his biggest coaching challenges, and I thought he did a great job with it. There are just a lot of little things that he had to deal with. Sometimes it can wear on you. But he was still able to get the kids to where they needed to be and have a good finish.”

Bradley was hired in 2016 to take over a team that went winless the year before. With him as coach, OLSH posted a winning season every season he was there. The best was 2018, when the Chargers went 12-2 and won the WPIAL Class A title with his son, Tyler, at quarterback.

Prior to joining OLSH, Bradley had short head coaching stints at Ambridge (2014-15) and Sto-Rox (2012-13). He went 23-3 at Sto-Rox and finished as the WPIAL Class A runner-up twice. At Ambridge, he went 8-11 and led the Bridgers to the WPIAL playoffs in 2015.

Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.

Tags: Our Lady of the Sacred Heart