Pat New’s social studies classroom at Benet happens to overlook the football field he used to run around on as a second-grader.

“My mom tells me I was begging her to play because all of my friends were playing,” New said. “Both of my parents let me play.”

Fittingly, where New started playing football will also be where his journey as a head coach comes to a close. Just a few days after the 2025 season concluded, New announced to his team that he would be retiring after 16 years as head coach of the Redwings. New ends his tenure with a 92-67 mark and 10 IHSA playoff bids.

“I was ready to go,” New said. “After our Week 9 game against DePaul Prep and the season ended, I felt that it was the right time. When people hang it up, they say it just felt like and that’s how it felt for me... It was difficult at first, but now it’s great. It took about two days, but I knew that I made the right decision.”

A Benet alum and an accomplished Redwing student-athlete in the 1980s, New spearheaded a run of eight consecutive playoff berths from 2012-19. Named the ESCC Coach of the Year in 2012, when Benet went 11-2 overall and reached the IHSA state semifinals, New led the Redwings to three semifinal appearances in his tenure.

“I had the opportunity to talk to all of the guys, from freshmen all the way up to seniors,” New said. “It was really nice. It was special to open up and tell them what they meant to me and why I was doing what I was doing... We were a top team from 2012 through 2017. Everybody was really bought in and our guys played hard.”

New will be succeeded by former Wisconsin running back and Super Bowl champion James White, a former assistant at NIU and Illinois who Benet hired as its next head coach last month. Although New is retiring from coaching, he intends to continue teaching social studies and remain involved with Benet’s athletic department.

“Pat is an outstanding person and a good friend of mine,” Benet athletic director Scott Lawler said. “He’s one of the best football players in our school’s history and he put our football program on the map in recent years. He’s taken a lot of teams to the playoffs and he’s been to the Final Four three different times in his career... We’re very grateful for what Pat has done for our program.”

New, who grew up in Naperville and attended Benet from 1983-87, helped lead the Redwings to three IHSA playoff appearances and the 1984 Class 4A state finals during his high school career. A wide receiver and defensive back, New went on to enjoy a four-year career at Northwestern, where he played in 43 games and totaled 345 receiving yards, two touchdown grabs and two interceptions.

“I wanted to stay involved,” New said. “My fondest memories are great memories with teammates, the fun we shared and the hard work we put in. [Wednesday] night, all of my Benet teammates and I went and hung out in downtown Naperville. We still hang out.”

While New didn’t become a head coach directly out of college, he gained experience as an assistant while also working a job in the business world. New made stops at Oak Park-River Forest and Naperville North, where he assisted for seven years alongside longtime coach Larry McKeon, who won two state championships.

“I wanted to be a college football coach right out of school, but I had to balance things out with my family,” New said. “I had a very young family in college and I couldn’t fully make the leap because I needed to support my family, so I worked an an assistant... I just missed the game and the first time football was being played on Friday nights, I told myself that I needed to be a part of that.”

Armed with several years of assistant coaching experience, New took over as Benet’s head football coach in 2010, replacing Gary Goforth. The Redwings went 5-5 and made the Class 7A playoffs in New’s first year as head coach After a down season in 2011, Benet rattled off eight playoff trips and a 62-28 record during that span.

“I picked up a lot from every stop I made, especially at Naperville North” New said. “I picked up a lot from [Larry]. My seven years with Larry at Naperville North were the most influential. I spent time going to coaching clinics and I spent time at Northwestern when Gary Barnett was there. I got to know a lot of college coaches and that played a big part in molding my philosophy.”

While Benet went 7-4 and qualified for the Class 5A playoffs last season, the Redwings fell short of playoff contention this season, finishing 3-6. As he stood on the sideline during the fourth quarter of Benet’s Week 9 finale against DePaul Prep, a 35-6 loss, the thought of his coaching career ending crept into his mind.

“I was like, ‘wow, this could potentially be the last game I ever coach at Benet,’” New said. “It hit me there in the fourth quarter.”

Among New’s fondest memories as Benet’s head coach is beating state-ranked Joliet Catholic in 2015. Another of his unforgettable moments was the team’s 26-24 victory over Downers Grove North in the 2012 Class 7A state quarterfinals. The Redwings stunned the Trojans on a touchdown pass with three seconds remaining.

“The sidelines emptied out onto the field,” New said. “It was really amazing and it was one of the greatest games I’ve ever been a part of. I don’t think that moment could ever be repeated.”

New, who once taught P.E. at Benet, hopes to continue teaching social studies for several more years. While some coaches may be influenced by their work in the classroom, New said his years of experience in coaching have helped grow his teaching abilities.

“I could teach until I’m 75,” New said. “I love the content and I love the students. I think coaching has actually influenced my teaching because if kids fail my class, then that means I’m not communicating effectively. We would never think to not be super thorough with our football players because if we’re not, then we’d lose. I thought I should applied those methods to our students.”

New’s interests outside of teaching and coaching include traveling and spending time with his two grandchildren. As New transitions out of coaching, he’s made himself available as a resource for both White and Benet athletics as the school prepares for a new era.

“When [Pat] first arrived, he started to get his culture in,” Lawler said. “We went to the playoffs a bunch of years in a row. [Pat] brought a consistent standard to the football program and people were talking about Benet football a lot of the years he was here.”