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In August 2024, Jon Huntley found out his 19-year-old son had been killed in a motorcycle accident. He was devastated.

Shortly after the tragic incident, the former Baldwinsville special teamer’s phone rang. It was his former coach, Carl Sanfilippo. The two hadn’t talked in years, but Sanfilippo heard about the news and wanted to check in.

Through Huntley’s difficult time, he recalled what Sanfilippo would tell the team.

“Pain is temporary, (but) pride is forever,” he remembers Sanfilippo saying.

After their initial talk, Sanfilippo called back for the next few days to make sure Huntley’s head was in the right place. It helped him cope with his loss, Huntley said.

“In my darkest moment, I got a phone call, and it was Coach,” Huntley said. “Just him calling me, after what just happened, meant the world to me.”

The act of sympathy towards Huntley demonstrated Sanfilippo’s dedication to building his career with Baldwinsville. Sanfilippo, a Syracuse football alum, coached the Bees for four decades from 1984-2024 before retiring at the end of last season and being replaced by one of his old players, former Tennessee Titans strength and conditioning coach Tyler Rouse.

On Sept. 4, the high school held an official ceremony to rename the football field after Sanfilippo following his legendary career.

“He can now go for a walk and look at the sign, and this is our community’s way of saying thank you,” former Baldwinsville player Paul Sojdak said.

Carl Sanfilippo stands with some of his former players after Baldwinsville honored him at its football game versus West Genesee. Sanfilippo’s 40-year career with the Bees featured a regional championship in 1989. Courtesy of PJ Duffy

When Sanfilippo was told Baldwinsville was renaming its football field, the former head coach said he felt “shocked” and “honored.” Though Sanfilippo was being celebrated, he credited people like Huntley, Sojdak and Rouse who got him there.

Sojdak and other former players returned to central New York to support Sanfilippo. Amy Byrne, a physical education teacher at Baldwinsville who worked closely with Sanfilippo, also attended the ceremony. It brought her immense joy, she said.

“I stepped back, and I saw all of his boys around him,” Byrne said. “He teared up. These kids were his life.”

Football has always been part of Sanfilippo’s family. His dad, Joe, was a head coach at Gallup High School in New Mexico, Salamanca and Jamestown. Sanfilippo remembers when he was 5 years old, following his dad into team meetings. While there, he learned how to break down film and the importance of discipline.

Since that initial exposure to football in the 1980s, Sanfilippo has seen the game change. Coaching styles have evolved. But Sanfilippo is proud of his ability to adapt.

“I don’t think there is any difference in the young man,” Sanfilippo said. “I think the world around them has changed, and you have to evolve with that.”

That quality allowed Sanfilippo to succeed with the Bees. He explained that many high schoolers are seeking role models. The longtime head coach said he’s never drank in public, despite seeing other coaches on social media with beers. He felt he needed to demonstrate what he preached to his players, he said.

Sanfilippo also believed setting high expectations was key to maximizing his players’ performance. He made it a point to meet with each player individually during the season to ensure they were reaching their highest potential, urging them to never be satisfied with where they were.

Rouse recognized that message as a freshman in 2009. Although Rouse became a running back, he was first a linebacker. During a drill, he remembers matching up against Baldwinsville’s two biggest offensive linemen.

He lost. Then lost again. But Rouse would line back up each time because Sanfilippo encouraged him he could win a rep. On his fifth try, he did, which led him to play four years at the varsity level, Rouse said.

Sojdak recalled Sanfilippo giving pregame speeches with such passion that tears flowed down his face. Bryne explained that Sanfilippo always had a unique presence about him, calling him “an inspiration.”

“He commanded the room,” Byrne said. “Everyone stood a little straighter. He just had a presence about him that no other teacher I’ve ever worked with in my 27 years has ever had. The last thing they wanted to do was disappoint Coach.”

Sanfilippo said he took that dedication to his recruiting. If someone had a lower grade point average, Sanfilippo was willing to help them out if they were putting their best foot forward.

“If you’re not going to pay attention to a teacher or listen to your mom, you’re not going to get us a fourth-and-1 at the goal line,” Sanfilippo said.

For Huntley, football initially never crossed his mind; he was a soccer player at heart. If it weren’t for Sanfilippo, he said he never would’ve stepped on the gridiron.

Sanfilippo attended one of Huntley’s Baldwinsville soccer practices and liked how far he kicked the ball. Sanfilippo met him in the gym afterward, Huntley recalled, and asked him why he was there.

“To use my phone,” Huntley responded.

“No, you’re here for football,” Sanfilippo said defiantly.

From then on, Huntley served as Baldwinsville’s punter and kicker. He even eventually tried out for multiple NFL teams.

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Sanfilippo’s endless drive led to success on the field, too. During Sojdak’s senior season in 1989, Baldwinsville made the regional finals against Saratoga High School.

Baldwinsville entered as a heavy underdog. Sojdak remembers the detailed game plan Sanfilippo carefully crafted, preparing for anything Saratoga would throw its way. But then the game started.

Saratoga began marching down the field on its first drive. Sanfilippo called a timeout. He told his players to take deep breaths and to scrap the game plan. Baldwinsville called plays it had never tried all year.

The strategy worked. Baldwinsville beat Saratoga 9-7 for the championship, with all nine points coming from Huntley’s leg. After the celebration subsided in the locker room, Sanfilippo embraced his kicker.

Now, Sanfilippo remains involved behind the scenes. He still watches Baldwinsville’s film and has made himself available to Rouse, who played under him from 2009-12 and described him as a “father figure.”

“Even though he’s been in it for (over) 40 years, he’s still trying to learn and see things differently,” Rouse said. “Having someone like Coach to lean on …(is helpful).”

Off the field, Sanfilippo has found more time to pursue his favorite hobby — scuba diving. He founded Freedom Scuba USA, a scuba company that’s been operating for three decades, taking groups from across the country on his boat.

Sanfilippo can also pursue his captain’s license, allowing him to man a 70-foot tour boat multiple days per week.

But on the field, it’s Rouse’s team. Byrne and others miss running into Sanfilippo in the hallways. She recognized it’s the end of an era, but his legacy will always be immortalized at Baldwinsville’s field.

“Baldwinsville wouldn’t be what it is without having Coach Carl Sanfilippo,” Byrne said. “They broke the mold when they made him.”

Published on September 15, 2025 at 9:00 pm