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Tom Kendra | The Muskegon Chronicle, March 05, 2009 9:45 a.m.

Muskegon High School stayed close to home in picking its new head football coach.

Matt Koziak, who has served as the Big Reds' offensive coordinator for the past three seasons, has been named the replacement for Tony Annese at the state's all-time winningest high school football program.

"I am honored to be named the head football coach at Muskegon High School," said Koziak. "Muskegon has tremendous history and tradition to go along with being the most successful football program in state history. I can't wait to continue what has been built."

Koziak, 33, played football at Mona Shores and Western Michigan and started his coaching career at Steele Middle School in 2002.

He became a varsity assistant under Annese in 2004. He served one year as the offensive coordinator at Muskegon Heights in 2005 under Tommie Elliott, helping the Tigers to a 7-3 record and setting school records in scoring and total yards in the process.

The Big Reds have thrived offensively under Koziak the past three years, with a 37-2 record over the period and two state championships. Along the way, the Koziak-led offense broke the school record for scoring with 575 points. Also, the Big Reds offense twice set new school marks for total yards.

"Continuity was very important to the selection committee," said Muskegon athletic director Mike Watson. "Matt's skill as a teacher-coach is very evident and he represents all of the success we've had in the recent past. We are extremely pleased to have Matt on board."

Koziak was selected from a pool of seven coaches who interviewed with the 10-person team comprised of Muskegon Public Schools administrators, coaches, parents, current and retired employees.

Koziak, a science teacher at Bunker Middle School, and his wife Melissa have three children: Stephen (4), Monica (3) and Payton (4 months).