Susquehanna appoints Cook as head coach for a second term – Scranton Times-Tribune

Kyle Cook is returning to the sidelines at Susquehanna.

The school board voted 7-0 on Thursday night to appoint the former coach to once again guide the varsity football program. Two years ago, Cook was not brought back after 10 years and was replaced by Mose Perry.

Susquehanna, which co-sponsors football with Blue Ridge, reached the District 2 Class 2A playoffs last season and finished with a 6-5 record.

Cook spent the last two seasons as an assistant coach at Windsor Central High School in New York.

“I am ecstatic about being back,” Cook said. “When I didn’t get the job back two years ago, I knew that I would put back in for it and hoped I would return someday. I went up to New York to Windsor and worked with a veteran staff and learned a lot. I am excited about being brought back.”

During the 2023 offseason, Susquehanna replaced Cook, who spent 10 seasons as the head coach, and brought stability to the program that had three coaching changes in three years.

In his decade as the head coach, Susquehanna had a record of 42-61. The Sabers played in the District 2 playoffs six times and reached the Class 2A championship game in 2018.

A standout for the Sabers, he played on a pair of playoff teams.

“Any time we go through the hiring process, we are open to every candidate who applies,” Susquehanna principal Richard Emmons said. “We are always putting our students first and putting them in the best positions possible to succeed. I am excited for Kyle; he is an alumnus of the school and is familiar with the program.

“We are a program that we feel is growing with the co-op with Blue Ridge, and we are excited to see Kyle work to continue to build the Sabers football program.”

Perry, a longtime assistant at Susquehanna, had a record of 11-11 in two seasons as the head coach. Last fall, the Sabers had their first win over Dunmore since 1998 and had wins over traditional powers Lakeland and Old Forge while finishing as the No. 2 seed in the District 2 Class 2A power rating standings.

Cook will also have the opportunity to coach his son, Owen, who will be a freshman in the fall and was a part of the junior high program that finished last season with a record of 5-2-1.

“I have my staff pretty much set,” Cook said. “I have to get down to Blue Ridge and work toward getting those participation numbers up. I will be meeting with the kids from Susquehanna to talk about the direction we are going offensively and defensively, keeping the weight program going, and getting everyone excited about the program.”