SAN JOSE — Bellarmine has hired Armando Gonzalez Jr. to be its next wrestling coach, the school announced earlier this week.
Gonzalez, who was an assistant coach at Bellarmine for the last two seasons, will take over for long-time head coach Scott Benson. Benson will remain on staff as an assistant coach.
“Being able to implement a vision is really exciting for me,” Gonzalez told the Bay Area News Group.
“Getting to teach the kids to love what I’ve gotten out of wrestling in my life and love the sport that we do. That’s what’s really, really exciting is seeing the kind of prospects both academically and athletically these guys become in the next few years as they move on to whatever’s next. I think building them for the next chapter of their life is really, really exciting.”
Gonzalez’s wrestling roots run deep in the South Bay.
His dad, Armando Gonzalez Sr., was a high school wrestling coach at Gilroy and helped the school become the wrestling powerhouse it is today.
Gonzalez was one of the most successful wrestlers during his time at Gilroy. He was a USA Wrestling High School All-American, four-time CCS champion and a two-time state qualifier with his dad as coach. He graduated from Gilroy in 2006 and went on to wrestle in college at Cal State Fullerton where he was a team captain and four-year varsity competitor.
Gonzalez was the head coach at Saratoga High before becoming an assistant at Bellarmine in 2022. He said having high-level experience in the Central Coast Section as both a wrestler and a coach will help him in his first year.
“I’m in a unique position where I’m surrounded by some incredible people and mentors,” Gonzalez said. “Coach Benson has been at Bellarmine for 35 years. My dad was one of the architects who built Gilroy High into a powerhouse. … I’ve seen it all. My family has been in coaching for generations and I’ve been a competitor here in the CCS. I think everything has kind of led me to this point.”
Bellarmine has had a rich history of wrestling in the CCS, but Gonzalez will be trying to lead the San Jose school to its first team section title since 2001.
Junior Rocco Biasotti is slated to be one of Gonzalez’s best wrestlers heading into next season. The 175-pound wrestler was the lone Bellarmine athlete to place at the CCS Masters in February, taking sixth place.
The last CCS champion from Bellarmine was 132-pound Joseph Orlando in 2020.
Bellarmine athletic director Kevin Saldivar said he hopes Gonzalez can build on the foundation that was set by Benson and believes the program is in good hands with Gonzalez as head coach.
“The future is bright for the wrestling program and we’re looking forward to supporting Armando and the coaching staff for many years to come,” Saldivar said in a statement.