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Robert Pomazak is the new man at the top of St. Charles North’s football program.

Pomazak was officially hired as the head coach of the North Stars at Monday night’s District 303 Board of Education meeting. He replaces retiring coach Mark Gould, who led St. Charles North on the gridiron from the varsity program’s inception in 2001.

Like his predecessor, Pomazak made a name for himself as a defensive coach prior to being hired to lead the North Stars. He spent the past 10 years working his way up the coaching ranks at Elk Grove, including the past two years as that school’s defensive coordinator and assistant head coach.

“I couldn’t be more excited about the opportunity the administration has given me at St. Charles North,” Pomazak said. “Mark and his staff have done such an amazing job of laying a wonderful foundation over the past 12 years with all the success they’ve had.

“I’m just humbled to take this position, and I hope to keep the traditions going and take us through the next phase of what’s hopefully going to be a great era for St. Charles North football.”

Pomazak had a hand in helping Elk Grove reach the state playoffs each of the past four years, including a trip to the Class 7A quarterfinals in 2011.

Life in the Mid-Suburban League was familiar for Pomazak, who grew up in Arlington Heights and graduated from Rolling Meadows in 1996. He played football and baseball while in high school and continued his baseball career at Iowa State before finishing his bachelor’s degree at North Central College.

Pomazak will be a physical education teacher at St. Charles North. He filled the same role at Elk Grove and was also the school’s sophomore baseball coach, but coaching football has always been his primary passion.

“I love the emotion of football and the preparation that football requires,” Pomazak said. “Not to take anything away from baseball, but from a coaching perspective I just really love the challenge that football provides.”

Pomazak plans on being the defensive coordinator at St. Charles North, but he also figures to have a hand in developing an offensive scheme he says will be designed to fit the North Stars’ personnel.

On defense, Pomazak plans to implement the 3-4 system he ran at Elk Grove, which he describes as primarily a Cover-2 with multiple fronts and multiple coverages.

“Based on the scheme of the week or the team we’re preparing for, we’ll have the ability to audible our defense into what we feel will be the most successful call,” Pomazak said. “What you can expect out of our defense is we’re going to be extremely physical, extremely fast and extremely prepared. Hopefully that creates an opportunity to swarm the football, create turnovers and put the offense in a good position to score with a short field.”

St. Charles North enjoyed a run of eight straight playoff appearances under Gould from 2002-09, but the North Stars failed to reach the postseason each of the past three years. Junior offensive lineman Chase Gianackos, a Division-I prospect, headlines the list of players expected to return from the St. Charles North team that finished 4-5 last fall.

“The most important thing is to keep the program moving forward,” Pomazak said. “I know there’s a ton of talent and they’re never short on athletes at St. Charles North. From the junior high on up I know there’s a ton of potential.”