Esposito takes the reigns for Brawley football
Veteran football coach Bert Esposito takes over as head coach at Brawley.
BRAWLEY, Calif. (KYMA, KECY) - Brawley Union High School has a rich football tradion and generations of Wildcats have found success out on the gridiron. Now a new chapter begins at Warne Field.
Just a year after capturing the Imperial Valley League title and securing a spot in the CIF San Diego Section Division I playoffs, the Wildcats are aiming even higher. Brawley has selected Bert Esposito as the leader to take the program to new heights.
Esposito brings more than four decades of coaching experience to Brawley, including two CIF section championships. His most recent title came in 2019 with Temecula Valley. The veteran coach says the communities passion and commitment to football made this such an attractive job.
"This is kind of a town that's a lot like Texas," Esposito said. "Every high school coach talks about how fun it is to coach in Texas, with the whole town behind you. I watched the [Bell] game on YouTube and thought, 'Whoa.' You can just feel the energy and commitment from this community."
Esposito's coaching journey began back in college when his former high school coach handed him the key to the JV team.
"He said, 'Why don't you come coach JV for me?'" Esposito recalled. "I took it and ran with it. One thing led to another."
But while Esposito is focused on winning games, his vision for the program extends far beyond the field.
"Academics come first. These are student-athletes," he said. "It's about character and culture — being the premier kids on campus. In 2018, my first year at Temecula, we won the CIF Academic Championship for football. That was one of the highlights of my career."
On the field, fans can expect a slightly different brand of football than they're used to.
"I throw the ball a lot more," he said with a smile. "I love the passing game. We're going to keep what's been successful here and maybe add a few things. I bring a bit of a different approach, and that might just energize things."
Esposito has hit the ground running at Brawley and has the Wildcats working in the weight room and has scheduled 7-on-7 scrimmages throughout the spring and summer.
