Kirkpatrick departing at St. Viator

Chris Kirkpatrick will be returning to a familiar place.

Kirkpatrick is leaving St. Viator after 10 years as head football coach to become the athletic director and an assistant football coach at Bishop McNamara. Kirkpatrick had spent five years at the Kankakee school as an assistant coach and went to college at nearby Olivet Nazarene University in Bourbonnais.

Kirkpatrick said considering his family “was the main thing” since his wife is expecting twins in a few months and that will give them three kids.

“Viator has always been good to me and I’ve had 10 good years here,” said Kirkpatrick, who told his team about the move Tuesday. “Professionally it’s a chance for me to be able to go and be an AD and still be able to coach.”

Kirkpatrick, a native of Georgia, was 48-48 in 10 years at Viator with three playoff appearances and a shared East Suburban Catholic Conference title in 2006. Bishop McNamara head football coach Rich Zinanni, who has won 302 games and four state titles in 37 seasons, will be stepping down as athletic director at the end of the year.

“I have the utmost respect for Zinanni and it’s a place I’ve been before,” said Kirkpatrick, who also coached softball at Bishop McNamara. “To go back and work for the same boss, as far as that part goes, it will be seamless.

“Change is good sometimes, I definitely think, for everybody involved.”

The three consecutive playoff appearances under Kirkpatrick from 2004-06 equaled the best streak achieved two other times at the school. The Lions went 23-9 in that stretch.

“Chris worked hard to make sure both he and his team were prepared on a weekly basis,” said St. Viator athletic director Tim Carlson in a statement from the school. “He put in a great deal of time and effort to put our teams in a position to compete and be successful. I am sure his strong work ethic will serve him well in his new position.”

Kirkpatrick’s Viator teams in 2005 led by future Vanderbilt quarterback Jared Funk and 2006 led by current South Dakota quarterback Dante Warren reached the second round of the playoffs.

“We had some great years here,” Kirkpatrick said. “We set some goals here and there were some we reached and some we didn’t.

“The thing I’m most proud of is we reached our No. 1 main goal in the program and that was helping these kids become better people.”

Kirkpatrick will stay at Viator in his position as dean of students through the end of the school year. The school said its search for a new coach will begin in November.

“We are grateful for his 10 years of service as both dean of students and head football coach,” said the Rev. Robert M. Egan, C.S.V., Saint Viator High School president. “He brought commitment and dedication to our mission and this team. I congratulate him and wish him well as he begins a new chapter in his life.”