After leading Castle Park High School’s football team to lofty heights with a 9-1 regular season record and a runner-up finish in the San Diego Section Division V championship game, Chris Livesay has stepped down from the head coaching position and the school has announced a new interim head coach: Paco Silva.
According to Castle Park High School athletic director Bernard Ansolabehere, Livesay stepped down because of issues related to his career outside of football.
“It is a big loss for our football program and he will be greatly missed,” Ansolabehere said. “Coach Livesay is an amazing coach and obviously did an outstanding job for us.”
Silva, like Livesay, has held a number of football coaching jobs in the South County area for an extended period of time.
He served as head coach at Southwest High School from 2015-18, leading the Raiders to respectability and a San Diego Section playoff berth while there.
Prior to that, he had a highly productive run as an assistant coach at Otay Ranch High School for 13 years.
He was serving as the offensive coordinator at Eastlake High School last season before being elevated to interim head coach status following the surprise suspension of then head coach John McFadden.
Silva led the Titans to a 4-1 record in their final five games of the 2019 season, including a Metro-Mesa League championship (4-0 league record) and a berth in the opening round of the Division I playoffs.
He earned the KUSI-TV Prep Pigskin Report’s Strike Force Coach of the Week Award for Week 8.
“We are luckily still in very good hands with him as our interim head coach for the 2020 season,” Ansolabehere said. “Coach Silva brings tremendous knowledge, experience and a lot of success with him to Castle Park.”
“I’m a very passionate football coach, I love this game,” Paco told the television station upon receiving the award last year.
Livesay earned honors as last season’s San Diego Section Coach of the Year after leading the Trojans to an overall 11-2 record, including the playoffs.
“It took so many people doing really great things in order for us to accomplish what we did,” Livesay said after being honored with the section award. “Coaches coached and players bought in. I knew coming into (the season) that the most important thing was to surround myself with as much talent as possible. Lawrence Perry and John Whitfield were my first two phone calls. These two had been high quality assistants at neighboring schools and they were both vital to our success on defense.
“Our offensive staff was run by a group of rookie coaches. Airrien Smith, who had never coached above the novice level before, became our varsity offensive coordinator. Airrien led a staff of rookies: wide receiver coach Christian Velez and offensive line coach Louie Hernandez had never coached football on any level before this year.
“I am extremely proud of what we all have accomplished together (in 2019). I had the great fortune to work for some of the best to ever do it. Jose Mendoza has been the biggest influence on me as a coach. He taught me everything I know.”
Now it’s time to back up what the Trojans accomplished last season as the torch has been passed to a new head coach.
Castle Park is scheduled to kick off the 2020-21 season with a non-league home game against the Mountain Empire Red Hawks on Jan. 8.
The Trojans will get a gut-check the following week with a CIF finals rematch at Francis Parker.
HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
Castle Park Trojans
January
8: Mountain Empire at Castle Park, 7 p.m.
15: Castle Park at Francis Parker, 7 p.m.
29: San Ysidro at Castle Park, 6:30 p.m.
February
5: Castle Park at Montgomery, 6:30 p.m.
12: Chula Vista at Castle Park, 6:30 p.m.
19: Castle Park at Mar Vista, 6:30 p.m.
26: Castle Park at Southwest, 6:30 p.m.
March
5: Castle Park at Crawford, 7 p.m.
12: Sweetwater at Castle Park, 6:30 p.m.
