Frank Serrao

Frank Serrao (August 10, 1918 – May 6, 1991) was an American football coach. He served as the head football coach at Redlands University in Redlands, California from 1964 to 1983, compiling a record of 115–80–1. Serrao led his 1976 Redlands team to the title game of the NAIA Division II Football National Championship, losing to Joe Fusco's Westminster Titans.

Serrao attended Rutherford High School in Rutherford, New Jersey, where he played football as a fullback and linebacker and captained the 1936 team. Jim Blumenstock, who later played college football at Fordham University and professionally with the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL), was a teammate of Serrao on Rutherford's football squad. Serrao also participated in track at Rutherford. He was the shot put champion of the North Jersey League for two years. His farthest throw was 48 feet (15 m), but he lost out by six inches at a state meet to Monte Irvin, who went on to play professional baseball in the Negro leagues and Major League Baseball (MLB). After graduating from Rutherford, Serrao moved on to Bucknell University, lettering for two seasons on the Bucknell Bison football team and playing mostly as a fullback. He also lettered three times on the track team, competing in the shot put. Serrao graduated from Bucknell in 1941 and joined the Army Air Forces in July 1942, serving as a mechanic and reaching the rank of staff sergeant.^[1]

Serrao earned a master's degree in physical education at New York University and then began his coaching career in 1948 at his alma mater, Rutherford High School, working as backfield coach under George Melinkovich. Serrao succeed Melinkovich as head coach in 1949 when Melinkovich left to become head football coach at Utah State University. Serrao also coached basketball and track at Rutherford.^[2]

Serrao died on May 6, 1991, at St. Bernardine Medical Center in San Bernardino, California following complications from open-heart surgery performed two weeks prior.^[3]