Milford turns to Morelli
- Updated: March 27, 2024
Milford High School didn’t have to look far to find its next varsity football coach.
Max Morelli, an assistant on the Milford staff for the past five years, was selected earlier this week to replace Keith Jones, who resigned in February after 23 seasons as the program’s head coach.
Morelli, a 33-year-old Merrimack resident, played for Jones at Milford from 2004 to 2007. He began his coaching career shortly after he graduated from the University of New Hampshire.
“I think I always had interest in being a head coach in general, but I wanted to make sure the situation was right for that first step into it,” Morelli said. “Having coached there (Milford) recently and having a relationship with the kids, having played there and grown up there I felt it was a perfect opportunity. It was a no-brainer, given all the things that lined up. It’s pretty cool because it’s kind of a full circle-type of deal for me.”
Morelli began his coaching career as an assistant as Nashua North. He was also an assistant at Bishop Guertin and for Bedford (Mass.) before joining Jones as part of Milford’s staff.
Morelli ran Milford’s defense for the last three seasons, but has coached on both sides of the ball.
“I definitely put a tremendous amount of value on my time playing there and coaching under (Jones), just kind of the approach to what you look for in kids off the field and how they are as people,” Morelli said. “That part I hope to keep up to the standards that he set, but I think scheme-wise it’ll probably be pretty different. We’ll be a little more spread out.
“New Hampshire football you gotta be able to run the ball, but it’ll look a little different. Defensively we’ve been kind of amorphous anyways. We’ll try and see what fits best for the kids. More spread out, more tempo maybe, but nothing too crazy.”
Morelli said he expects most of last year’s coaching staff to return.
“The program is in pretty good shape,” he said. “It’s not like Keith walked away with things in bad condition. We’ll try to focus on those little details that we can improve.
“I’m thankful for the coaches I’ve coached under over the years who gave me opportunities to learn. Looking forward to trying to fill the shoes that Keith left, having so much success for such a long time.”
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