There will be a new face leading the Pitman High School football team in the coming months.
On Monday, athletic director Dustin Curtiss informed Eric Reza Sr. that he would not be brought back as the school’s varsity head football coach. The move comes after the Pride went 2-8 this past season, which is tied for the worst record in program history.
Reza informed his team of the move during lunch on Tuesday.
Neither he nor Curtiss responded when asked for comment on the move. Pitman High is expected to make a formal announcement in the coming days.
Reza will remain a history teacher at the school. Meanwhile, there was also no word about his son, offensive coordinator Eric Reza Jr., and his future with the team.
Despite Pitman posting six consecutive losing seasons, the position seems to still be highly sought-after. Multiple sources told the Turlock Journal on Wednesday night that there were at least two individuals who have thrown their names in the running to be the next leaders of the program.
Reza became the fifth head coach in Pitman history when he took over for Lance Weckerle in the summer of 2021. The Pride went 3-6 that year, the first full season since the COVID-19 pandemic, and never improved on the win total over the next three seasons.
In Reza’s four years at the helm, the Pride went 10-29 overall, including a 7-13 record against Central California Athletic League opponents. A chunk of those losses in conference play came against crosstown rival Turlock, who outscored the Pride 216-20 in the last four editions of the Harvest Bowl.
Last season was the most lopsided Harvest Bowl in history, with the Bulldogs claiming victory, 66-0. It also gave the Pride their first 0-7 start in history.
Reza has more than three decades of coaching experience across the youth and high school levels. He coached at both Patterson and Turlock high schools before coming to the brand new Pitman campus in 2004 to teach and coach at the school’s freshman and junior varsity teams.