Heir

Assistant coach primed to lead the football program this fall

whis longtime post at Middlesex School, where he served as athletic director and taught economics and math.

Joe Jr. trained to be a quarterback, so whether it was backyard football, youth football, watching from the sidelines of his dad’s games, or playing on his dad’s teams at Malden Catholic and Middlesex, the game was always a big part of his upbringing.

While at Middlesex, where Joe Jr. played from 1996 to1999, he won three letters each in football, basketball, and tennis, and was named All-League twice in football and tennis. He served as captain for the football team as a senior, when the team won the ISL and New England Championship. Later, at the University of Connecticut, Joe played NCAA Division I tennis, serving as a captain his senior year.

Now, as he takes the helm of the Dragons, Lang is eager to assume a role he’s been well prepped for.

“It’s bittersweet for me because John Mackay has taught me everything there is to know about coaching football,” Lang said. “He’s been a leader, not just of the boys, but of my fellow coaches.”

Along with his coaching responsibilities at St. George’s, Lang has served as the head of instructional services and is now director of the Horton Center for Learning, which provides academic support and skill building to students. He has also been head coach of the boys’ varsity tennis team since his arrival at SG with his wife, Julie, in 2014.

“One of the promises I made to myself when I graduated college was that I would find a job where I was able to work with kids and adults,” he said. For a time, he was a full-time tennis coach and worked for a high-performance youth program in Philadelphia that combined education and sports. Taking the job as an educator and coach at St. George’s, he said, was a great decision for his family — and ascending to the head football coaching position now is an incredible opportunity.

“There is no job in the ISL I would rather have than at St. George’s, never mind the country,” he said. “This is a prideful place, a prideful program, and I am thrilled and honored to be tasked with this great role.”