After finishing a win shy of playing in the Class 5 State Championship game with a 57-26 loss to Stone Bridge to cap a 10-3 overall, season Joe Mangano has decided to step down as the Head Football Coach of North Stafford's Wolverines.

Mangano penned a lengthy, heartfelt good-bye to the North Stafford football fans in a Facebook post that you can read below...

Dear North Stafford Football Family,

For the past 11 years, I have proudly served as the Head Football Coach at North Stafford High School. It is a job that I have given a 100 percent of myself to. It is a job that has been extremely rewarding and it has brought a great deal satisfaction personally and professionally. I love this football program and I hold it in the highest regard. I am proud to say that I am the longest tenured coach in the school’s history and in my eleven years as a head coach, I never applied or interviewed for another position. North Stafford Football has truly been home to me.

When I was hired at North Stafford, I was their fifth Head Coach in four years. The program was coming off back to back losing seasons and the moral was down. There was an overall sense of apathy and despair. After going 1-9 our first season we have not had a losing season in the past ten years. Over the past eight years, our record was 72-30, that is an average of 9 wins a season. During the past eight years, we won at least one playoff game. This is the longest streak in the area. We also have four state semifinals appearances, three regional titles, two district titles and more importantly over 50 of our players during this time have gone off to play college football.

Over the past two years our varsity team has been able to maintain a 3.0 GPA during the course of the season. Since 2013, our football team led by our Character Coach Todd Gaston, has been involved with numerous community service projects. Our players have served at the Brisben Center and Shilo Baptist Church, chopped wood for families in need, volunteered with S.E.R.V.E Stafford Food Bank and have adopted families for Thanksgiving and Christmas. Our players embodied the idea of serving and giving back to the local community.

I am more proud of this then any game or championship we have won. My goal was to create a great and consistent program that competed for championships every year with players of high character and excellent students. I believe we have been able to do that.

Due to some declining health issues and the increase demand and time to be a successful Head Coach, I have resigned my position as the Head Football Coach at North Stafford High School. This has been one of the most difficult decisions I have ever made, but at the current time, it is necessary. High blood pressure and heart disease is a part of my family’s history. My father suffered a heart attack at 44 years old because of stress. He eventually had triple bypass surgery as well. Being a husband and father of two young boys, the time, pressure and overall commitment it takes to run a team 365 days a year is something I can no longer do.

When I was first hired at North Stafford eleven years ago, my oldest son Jake, was only four months old and Brock wasn’t even in the works! Now Jake is in middle school and Brock will be turning 10 this spring. Time has flown by. I need to make myself and my family my priority.I want to thank Tom Nichols and Margaret Lowry for hiring me eleven years ago. I am extremely grateful and thankful for all they did for me. I also want to thank Dan Hornick and Mark Coleman for their continued support as my principal and athletic director. T

o have a successful high school football program it must start with having a supportive administration. I have been very fortunate to have the backing of our administration for the past eleven years. I also want to thank the assistant coaches on staff who have sacrificed and given so much of their time to our program. Over the eleven years we have had countless number of assistant coaches who volunteered their time all off season to help our players. So much time and sacrifice away from their families and unwavering loyalty and support. I’m humbled and thankful for all they have done for our program.

Finally, and most importantly, I want to thank all the current and past players who have played for me. Words can’t express how much I appreciate their passion, loyalty and commitment. I have been blessed to coach an unbelievable group of young men. Our players have embodied what it means to be a true student athlete. They have led both on and off the field. They have been role models and they have been champions.Looking back, I will always cherish the memories with the players. The 110’s/gassers, weight room, 9 on 9 and just the overall process and grind. I have been blessed to be a part of their lives.

Some of the greatest memories I will have are the regional championship wins. Looking at the faces of the players and seeing the jubilation and excitement will be something I will never forget. Our players understood the definition of hard work, discipline and commitment. They were in the weight room at 6:30 in the morning over the summer. They understood the work it took to be successful. They were “All In”. Because of that, they are champions.

In closing, I want to once again thank the North Stafford Community for your support. I am so thankful for your support for me and my family. The North Stafford Football Program has been my home for eleven years and it has brought memories I will cherish for a lifetime. As I step aside, our Assistant Head Coach and Defensive Coordinator Neil Sullivan will be our interim coach and hopefully the next head coach at North Stafford.

I am confident Coach Sullivan will continue our success and lead our program to even greater heights. I hope everyone rallies behind him and the other coaches on staff so our program continues to grow. I can’t wait to see what the future will bring, and I will be cheering North on! Thank you for all you have done for me and my family. Respectfully,

- Joe Mangano