Zarrillo, who has taught multiple subjects and coached numerous sports within the Glendale Unified School District since 1973, said it was time to move on.
“I’m going to retire as a history teacher at the end of the semester, and, in association with that, I’m stepping down as football coach,” said Zarrillo, who went 14-7 in the Pacific League. “Mrs. Evans has been very gracious and we had talked about the possibility about retiring from teaching and staying on as coach.
“She said yes to that possibility and I appreciate her extending that opportunity to me. I just decided that it would be a perfect thing to step down as coach and be retired.”
Zarrillo, a La Cañada Flintridge resident and the 2008 All-Area Coach of the Year, inherited the team in 2007 from co-Coaches Gordy Warnock and Bill Irace. Warnock, who guided the Falcons to their only CIF championship in 1973, and Irace had taken over the team after Alan Eberhart resigned in the middle of the 2006 season.
Crescenta Valley went 5-5 and 3-4 in league in 2007. Then the Falcons turned things around, going 9-3 and 6-1 in league for second place in 2008 before finishing 8-4 and 5-2 last season. Crescenta Valley began the 2009 playoffs with a 27-24 come-from-behind road victory against Santa Fe at Pioneer High in Whittier before suffering a 33-23 loss to second-seeded South Hills at Glendale High’s Moyse Field.
Under Zarrillo, the Falcons had many All-Area and all-league players that included quarterbacks Karsen Reedy and Kyle Cota, offensive lineman Sam Campbell, running back Harry Pessy and linebacker Jake Walker.
