Franklin Regional hires Getsy as football coach, Louisy as boys soccer coach

By: Paul Schofield
Monday, February 22, 2021 | 9:06 PM

Franklin Regional didn’t go too far to find a football coach to replace Hall of Fame coach Greg Botta.

They found their man at the high school.

Former Charleroi coach Lance Getsy was hired Monday by a 9-0 vote at the school district’s board meeting. Botta resigned in January.

The board also hired Thomas Louisy as its new boys soccer coach. He replaces Rand Hudson, who resigned after the season.

Getsy was on Botta’s staff in 2020 and also from ‘16-‘17. He also coached at Norwin, Elizabeth Forward, Gateway and Steel Valley, his alma mater.

Getsy, 45, was a 1994 Steel Valley graduate and played a few seasons at Slippery Rock before a concussion ended his playing career. He graduated from Slippery Rock in 1999, but before he graduated, he began coaching at Steel Valley.

He coached his brother Luke while at Steel Valley. Luke is a coach with the Green Bay Packers.

“I’m excited,” Getsy said. “Franklin Regional is a great place to be. It has great academics and great tradition.

“It’s going to be tough following a Hall of Fame coach. It’s going to be a challenge. Greg built a great program, and he taught boys how to become men.”

Getsy coached two seasons at Charleroi, but left when he was hired as a special education teacher at Franklin Regional. While at Charleroi, the Cougars were 17-5 and made the WPIAL playoffs both seasons, which included reaching the semifinals in 2018.

“I needed a change,” Getsy said. “Leaving Elizabeth Forward was tough, but this is a great opportunity.”

Botta leaves after coaching 27 years. The Panthers were WPIAL and PIAA Class AAA champions in 2005.

“He’ll be able to handle the job,” Botta said. “I knew he was a quality coach, and I knew sooner or later it would be time to set away. I worked with a lot of good candidates, and he’s a solid person.

“No. 1, Lance is intelligent. He’s got a great offensive mind. He’s a motivator, a hard worker and dedicated. He’s got a great foundation to build upon. He’ll do well.”

Getsy lives in North Versailles. His daughter Kalei is a senior at East Allegheny and daughter Taylar is a freshman at Westminster.

Getsy called himself a ‘Jack-of-all-trades’ when he played at Steel Valley. He can thank former Steelers quarterback Charlie Batch for that.

“I was a year behind Charlie, and when we were young, he was always the quarterback,” Getsy said. “I liked hitting people, so I played everywhere — center, guard, tackle, tight end, linebacker, safety and quarterback. Learning all those position helped me. I know how to play them.”

Getsy also learned a lot about coach from Botta, Steel Valley coach Ed Wehrer, Ray Braszo and George Novak.

“They taught me you always do whatever is right. Sometimes you’re faced with tough decisions, but as long as you do what’s best for the players, you won’t be wrong.”

Franklin Regional athletic director Zach Kessler said both coaches come with good credentials.

“Having Lance on staff and working him work put him ahead of the game,” Kessler said. “Having a coach in the build is ideal. He’ll be able to recruit players. He’ll be able to carry on the tradition that Greg built.

“Thomas got a great recommendation from Rand. A lot of our current players played for him at the Allegheny Force Football Club.”

Louisy was the director of that program.

Paul Schofield is a TribLive reporter covering high school and college sports and local golf. He joined the Trib in 1995 after spending 15 years at the Daily Courier in Connellsville, where he served as sports editor for 14 years. He can be reached at pschofield@triblive.com.

Tags: Franklin Regional