High School

Former Mater Dei football coach Frank McManus lands at Northern California power Cardinal Newman

Let go after one state-championship season as head coach, McManus now heads one of the North Coast Section's top programs

Mitch Stephens

Frank McManus (right) and defensive back from Mater Dei retrieves a gold chains around the neck of the coach as part of a ritual between defensive players.
Frank McManus (right) and defensive back from Mater Dei retrieves a gold chains around the neck of the coach as part of a ritual between defensive players. / Staff photo

Surprisingly let go from one of the nation's most renowned high school football programs, former Mater Dei coach Frank McManus had some more eye-opening news on Wednesday.

He's the new coach at Northern California power Cardinal Newman in Santa Rosa.

McManus, a 16-year assistant at the Southern California powerhouse, replaced legendary coach Bruce Rollinson in 2023 as head coach and led the Monarchs (13-1) not only to a state Open Division title, but a mythical national crown as well.

He was let go for unspecified reasons in April of 2024, but after spending a season as an assistant at Mission Viejo, he was hired Wednesday at a small-school state power that won two California championships under longtime coach Paul Cronin. The Cardinals, who played Oaks Christian in the first first CIF Bowl Game in 2006, has won 13 North Coast Section championships, the last in 2019.

Cronin left to take another post at nearby Windsor in 2021 and for the last four seasons went 37-13 under Richard Sanchez, who earlier this month announced his resignation to take a coaching job at University of La Verne.

That opened the door for the 48-year-old McManus who said in a release: "It's an honor to join a school with such a proud tradition of excellence. I’m excited to lead the program, work with its talented student-athletes, continue the legacy of success, and make the Cardinal Newman community proud.”

McManus becomes the seventh head coach in Cardinal Newman history, succeeding Sanchez, who led the Cardinals through three successful seasons, including an NCS Open Division appearance last year.

Planted in one of the nation's football hotbeds, in the heart of the highly congested Orange County, McManus is now located 400 miles North in the middle of Sonoma County's wine country.

Said Cardinal Newman athletic director Monica Mertle: "“Frank McManus is exactly the coach we need to mentor our student-athletes and take Cardinal Newman football to the next level. His ability to lead championship teams while instilling values of faith, discipline, integrity, and teamwork makes him an ideal fit for our program."

He'll take over a team that has loads of promise. The Cardinals went 10-2 last season and for the first time earned a spot in the NCS Open Division playoffs. According to the Santa Rosa Press-Telegram, eight of their 16 all-league players from last season were non-seniors, including highly-touted freshman quarterback LT Retamoza.

They open their season with a pair of Sac-Joaquin Section powers in Manteca and Grant, which won the CIF State D2-AA title last season.

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Mitch Stephens
MITCH STEPHENS

Mitch Stephens is a senior editor at SBLive Sports for California, a state he's covered high school sports since 1984. He won multiple CNPA and CPSWA writing awards with the Contra Costa Times, San Francisco Chronicle and MaxPreps.com before joining the SBLive staff in 2022. He's covered the beat nationally since 2007, profiling such athletes as Derrick Henry, Paige Bueckers, Patrick Mahomes, Sabrina Ionescu, Jayson Tatum, Chiney Ogwumike, Jeremy Lin and Najee Harris as preps. You can reach him at mitch@scorebooklive.com.

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