PITTSBURGH — Bob Palko, the head coach at Mt. Lebanon High School, has been named the 2021 Don Shula NFL High School Coach of the Year.
Palko was announced as the winner during the Pro Bowl in Las Vegas on Sunday.
“I think just meeting and being able to learn from the young kids,” said Palko during the broadcast on ESPN of what he loves about coaching. “You got to learn to adapt and adjust through life and these kids have really helped me do that. So it’s kind of a work in progress, but just proud.”
Palko led the Mt. Lebanon Blue Devils to the WPIAL and PIAA Championships in Class 6A in just his third season at the school. The Blue Devils finished the season with an undefeated, 15-0 record and won the school’s first state championship in history, defeating St. Joseph’s Prep 35-17.
Palko has coached a state championship-winning team at two different schools, his first one was won at West Allegheny in 2001.
He has an overall record of 241-81 during his tenure as a high school football coach.
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