Former CdM Coach Dan O’Shea named to lead St. Margaret’s football program

Dan O’Shea was named new football coach at St. Margaret’s Wednesday. (Photo courtesy St. Margaret’s High School).

St. Margaret’s Episcopal School officials announced Wednesday that former Corona del Mar coach Dan O’Shea has been named the school’s next head varsity football coach.

“So excited for a new challenge at St. Margaret’s after a phenomenal run with the CdM school community, coaching staff and players,” O’Shea told OC Sports Zone Wednesday.

Last month, CdM officials announced that O’Shea is “stepping down to pursue other opportunities that will provide him with more time to spend with his family.”

O’Shea said Wednesday his decision to go to St. Margaret’s was about his family. His wife Elizabeth O’Shea is chair of the math department at St. Margaret’s and the couple’s young sons, Jack and Peter, attend the elementary school there.

“I have been a member of the school community as a parent and have been nothing but impressed with the people involved since 2015 when my oldest started as Wee Tartan when he was a couple months old in 2015,” O’Shea said.

“The individuals in the school leadership team were critical to making this decision now, and I can’t wait to get started with the players on campus, in addition to meeting the existing coach/teaching staff on campus.”

O’Shea was the football coach at Corona del Mar for the last eight seasons, guiding the Sea Kings to an 80-18 record, including a CIF state 1A championship in 2019. Before that, O’Shea was Corona del Mar’s defensive coordinator during a time when the Sea Kings went 50-6 and won three CIF championships. 

O’Shea has 26 years of coaching experience, including time at St. Anthony High School, St. John Bosco, Long Beach Wilson and Trabuco Hills. 

“It is an honor to be selected as the next head football coach at St. Margaret’s Episcopal School,” O’Shea said in a release from the school. “The football program is blessed with a rich tradition as one of California’s winningest high school teams over the last 20 years. I can’t wait to lead the 2023 version of the Tartans.”

“I am confident that Coach O’Shea will continue to propel our football program forward, bridging success on the field with the development of high-quality citizens off the field,” said St. Margaret’s Executive Director of Community Health and Athletics, Patrick Bendzick.

CdM was a consistent winner under O’Shea, finishing 9-4 and advancing to the semifinal round of the CIF Division 3 playoffs this past season before losing to Yorba Linda, the eventual champion, 51-20. CdM won the CIF Division 3 title in 2019, defeating Grace Brethren. Then, the Sea Kings went on to capture the state title to finish a 16-0 season.

St. Margaret’s was 5-7 overall and 4-2 in the Orange Coast League under former coach Kory Minor this past season. The Tartans advanced to the CIF Division 11 playoffs defeating Segerstrom before losing to South Pasadena.

The enrollment is 475 in the high school. O’Shea will be an athletic department administrator, Bendzick told OC Sports Zone.

“We are finalizing the structure of that portion shortly,” he said.

Other teams in the Orange Coast League include Santa Ana, Orange, Saddleback, Calvary Chapel, Estancia and Costa Mesa.

—Tim Burt, OC Sports Zone; timburt@ocsportszone.com