Riverview tabs Carlynton alum Trevor George as football coach

By: Greg Macafee
Tuesday, February 11, 2020 | 5:34 PM

The Riverview Raiders have found their new football coach.

On Monday, the Riverview school board approved Trevor George, a former offensive coordinator for Ambridge and assistant for Blackhawk, to lead the program.

“(Riverview) is a great place to be, and that’s the most attractive thing about it,” George said. “One of the reasons I got into coaching — why my dad got into coaching, even my brother — we didn’t get into it to take over winning programs, we got into it to go in and help build for longevity purposes and build something that is going to sustain.”

George is a product of WPIAL football. He grew up in Hopewell but graduated from Carlynton, where he played quarterback. He went on to became a three-year letterman at Baldwin Wallace as a slot receiver. Then, right out of college, George received an opportunity to become the offensive coordinator at Ambridge in 2017.

He only remained at Ambridge for a year before receiving an intriguing opportunity that took him south to Myrtle Beach, S.C.

“I was driving down to Myrtle Beach for vacation, and I had a duffle bag of a couple golf outfits and some swim trunks,” George said. “Then I get a call for an interview for a coaching job at Carolina Forest in Myrtle Beach. I didn’t pack anything, didn’t have any plans on doing it. But I did the interview, got a teaching job and a coaching job. It was definitely a crazy experience.”

For the 2018 season, George acted as the wide receivers coach for the Panthers as they put together an 8-2 record and went to the second round of the state playoffs.

After a year of teaching and coaching in Myrtle Beach, George came back to Western Pennsylvania and spent this past year as a general assistant underneath Zack Hayward at Blackhawk.

The Cougars went 7-5, 5-2 in Northwest Eight Conference play and worked their way into the WPIAL semifinals before falling to eventual state champ Thomas Jefferson.

Hayward said George was a big part of their success.

“We were fortunate to have him this year, that is for sure,” Hayward said. “He’s a great dude, and he’s very energetic. He takes it to a whole new level, and our guys are definitely going to miss what he brought to the table. Not just X’s and O’s-wise but the relationships that he built.”

George also gained valuable experience by coaching several positions. Hayward said George wore multiple hats for the Cougars, which he believes will help with his transition to a head coach.

“I knew he was looking for opportunities to become a head coach, so I never hesitated to ask him to do more,” Hayward said. “I knew he was very capable of doing that. I know what he’s capable of, and I know the relationships he’ll form and build at Riverview. I think he’s definitely the right man for the job.”

For the first time, George is running his own program, and he is ready to hit the ground running. He met with his team Tuesday, and he said around 23 kids showed up, not including ninth graders.

He also said he plans to meet with the strength and conditioning coach later this week to put together a lifting plan, and he wants to start building for the future with the youth teams.

Despite the Raiders going 2-7 this past season, George is excited for what the future holds after watching the team’s highlights.

“There is a lot of talent that we have, and I truly believe that,” George said. “But now the big push is just getting those numbers back, out and that’s the biggest thing for me. I truly believe this is the start of a new page, and we can really get this thing moving in the right direction.”

Greg Macafee is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Greg by email at gmacafee@triblive.com or via Twitter .

Tags: Riverview