In honor of legendary Coach Ed Aversa, SCH is building a new team room below the Kingsley Gym named after him.
Coach Ed H’15 joined the Chestnut Hill Academy community in 1996 and has been a staple ever since.
Not only has Coach Ed left a positive impact on Blue Devil athletes when they arrived at Chestnut Hill, he has also played a vital role in bringing them to campus. Chris McInerney ’04 spoke about Coach Ed’s impact on CHA: “Coach Ed is the main reason I attended CHA. He immediately showcased the long-term benefits of the school and athletics. Ed is a close mentor of mine, and I’m very fortunate to have him in my life — as countless CHA students are. Ed took me under his wing and I am forever grateful.”
Current boys basketball coach and CHA graduate Julian McFadden ‘06 also spoke about Coach Ed’s impact on bringing students to our school community. Reflecting on the impact that seeing Coach Ed’s name on the team room will have on student athletes, he said, “I think this is one of those things I’ve been talking to my team about a lot, just that, like, you know, there are people that have helped build what is the Blue Devils mentality nowadays. And I think that to have his name on a team room, as a team guy, he’s kind of the ultimate person that has brought together a couple different worlds. I think he started bringing in a lot more kids that we weren’t getting at Chestnut Hill Academy at the time. And now SCH, he’s been able to kind of link the Chestnut Hill area with the rest of the surrounding Philadelphia areas. So for that name to be on that room, I think it’s just really it speaks towards what he’s done.”
SCH Senior Matt McTamney commented on what he views as one of Coach Ed’s best coaching traits: “he really just cares about everyone he coaches. You know, he isn’t even a coach anymore for me, at least, he hasn’t been for years, but every time I have a big game, he’ll reach out. He’ll say, you know, I’m proud of you.”
Sean Plunkett ‘04 who played for Coach Ed and coached with him for eight years echoed McTamney’s sentiment: “I think what makes him special, and the reason why he’s getting a room named after him, is the personal connections that he prioritized, you know, especially in his role being in the gym. You know, he saw kids from kindergarten through 12th grade coming through the locker room, getting equipment, getting Blue and Blue Day shirts, whatever it might be. And I don’t know if he knows every single kid’s name, but he knows just about everybody’s name. And that goes back to the early 2000s and fifteen to twenty years ago, and those personal connections are what make people remember him.”
Plunkett continued, “I really just remember the friendly conversations and catching up and, you know, just kind of connecting on a personal level, and having, you know, a nice, positive kind role model in the school that was outside of the classroom, and really, you know, was there for, you know, all the guys and now girls.”
Coach Ed’s son Joe Aversa ‘07, who is now SCH’s head wrestling coach and athletics department assistant equipment manager spoke about how much Coach Ed meant to the school community: “I think that he’s meant so much to this community, as you can tell just by the kids that come back and ask for him. You know, every year after year, there’s alums that come back and, ‘hey, where’s Coach Ed?’”
One of the people who worked closest with Coach Ed is athletic trainer Ms. Norma. Ms. Norma said that since day one she has always called Coach Ed “Sugar” because he has been, “so sweet and nice to [her] from [her] first day coming on board.” Ms. Norma also described Coach Ed as her “favorite big brother.”
When talking about some of Coach Ed’s best coaching traits Ms. Norma said, “I think that he has the ability to relate and communicate with almost any student, regardless of their race, their income, where they’re from in the city. I think he does a great job of just seeing people as they are.”
Coach Joe Aversa ‘07 also talked about the new team room. “ I think that number one, we’re going to have a beautiful, beautiful space down here once it gets done. And I think that having it named after my dad, hopefully will kind of instill the guys down here just to have the same type of respect that we had for Coach McArdle, Coach Plunkett, and, you know, coaches that have been here a long time and have given a lot to the SCH community.”
As for the Team Room and overall improvements to the lower level of the Commons, Athletic Director Dave Wilson said it’s “Needed big time.” Mr. Wilson added that the team room will include a big screen so that teams watch film.
All are welcome to join our school community in honoring Coach Ed for his 27 years of dedication to CHA and SCH athletics at half-time during the boys basketball game vs Friends Select. The game will tip-off Friday January 3rd at 5:00pm in the Kingsley Gym.
Can’t make it to the game? Tune in to the GameTime Sports Live Broadcast for full coverage of the game and halftime ceremony.
If you would like to donate to the Coach Ed team room click here!
