Twenty-three years, 16 playoff wins, six State Championships, numerous Coach of the Year awards, and more.

Despite his success on the football field, this week's Eagles Coach of the Week, Frank DeLano, says football is more than just a game.

DeLano is the head coach of Haddonfield Memorial High School, entering his 27th season with the school and 23rd as head coach. Similarly to the likes of Nick Sirianni and Dom DiSandro, DeLano is a proud Italian who says life is about two things: relationships and food.

"For us, it's more than just football. And for those people who say that football is just a game, I am going to wholeheartedly disagree," DeLano said. "These are the people who you turn to. These are the people who help you get through rough times in your life, to celebrate births of children, who are best men in weddings. This is so much more, if done right, than just the game, and for us, we've been lucky. We can surround this program with great people and that starts with me in terms of surrounding ourselves with the best possible staff, and then obviously, got to have a great support system in terms of administration in the school and with parents."

Along with coaching, DeLano is also a sixth grade math teacher for the middle school. His goal is to make a difference in the lives of everyone he is able to interact with.

Coach DeLano has built a foundation within the school and the relationships he has made are what have meant the most to him during his career.

"A great coach does more than teach skills; they inspire and motivate their team to reach their full potential. Coach DeLano consistently lifts the team's spirits, encourages players during tough times, and celebrates successes big and small, which is a huge reason he stands out," Haddonfield Memorial Athletic Director Lefteris Banos said.

While winning is the pinnacle of sports, DeLano believes you can still impact others and be successful.

"You can make a difference in so many people's lives. To me, at the end of the day, do you coach to be successful or to make a difference? I don't think that they need to be mutually exclusive, I think they can be intertwined, you can be successful and make a difference in people's lives."

While it's not easy to remain a coach at one place for a long time, DeLano never looked for the opportunity to jump ship no matter what shape the program was in. He feels lucky to have been able to stay at one place, surrounded by all the people that help him each day.

As DeLano put it, he's "been nowhere else on the planet except coaching football at Haddonfield Memorial High School."

"I'm forever grateful, because there's been a ton of relationships that have been built and we don't take it lightly, that privilege that we get each week to represent the 'H' (Haddonfield Memorial High School).

"You're not having this conversation with me if it wasn't for all the tremendous coaches that I have on my staff, past and present, and great football players in a wonderful, supportive community."

The veteran coach has no shortage of a resume when it comes to football – he was inducted into the New Jersey Football Coaches Hall of Fame in 2022 just a few years after making the 2016 South Jersey Football Coaches Hall of Fame.

His philosophy when it comes to each season is focusing on the present, noting that every team he has each year is unique. His teams do not live in the past no matter how successful they get. DeLano emphasized not putting unfair pressure on his players, noting that it's supposed to be fun and the best part of their day.

"For us, it's never been a look back to where we've been, it's where we are going to continue to grow and what journey and what legacy left behind by this senior group, and how can we help them get to where they want to be? And it's got to be a team, everyone's got to be all in," DeLano said.

"It's not fair to put pressure on those kids to be like past seasons. Let's make sure we're hyperfocused on the details of today, worrying about now, and how we're lining up this week."

Off the field, DeLano has made an impact on students, looking to make sure that they are productive people in society. The coach estimated that around 80 percent of his players are involved in some club or extracurricular activity outside of football.

"We want to make sure that our kids know that this game is a tool. It's an avenue for kids, you know, kids can go to play in college. But the flip side of it is we got to be good people and productive people in society," he said.

While coach DeLano knows it's his name that will be on the front of awards such as this one, he cannot go without giving credit where it's due and putting those around him ahead of himself.

"I hope everyone feels proud of this, because this is direct representation of our staff as well as our school community.

"This is a really cool, neat thing, but again, this is not just me. This is the ultimate staff and program recognition and we're just grateful that the Philadelphia Eagles believe in it, because the power of our game is beautiful."

– WRITTEN BY LIAM WICHSER