Sav Scaled E1773086019133 — Steve Savarese (AHSAA)

Steve Savarese’s legacy continues to grow well after his retirement.

The former state championship-winning football coach and longtime Executive Director of the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) is one of 12 members selected for the NFHS National High School Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2026.

“This is a great honor. But this honor is shared with all of those who I was so fortunate to work alongside with. The AHSAA’s role in helping to groom our future leaders through their participation in athletics and other extracurricular school activities should never be diminished. I believe the lessons learned through participation in educational athletics are essential to the development of our next generation of leaders.”
Steve Savarese

Savarese is the 13th AHSAA member to receive the national recognition and first since former Vestavia Hills coach Buddy Anderson in 2018.

Steve Savarese

Savarese was born in New York but grew up in Leeds. He graduated from Southwestern College in Kansas before starting his coaching career away from Alabama.

He returned to the state in 1982, making four coaching stops over 25 seasons including:

Ensley (1982-84)
Benjamin Russell (1985-96)
Daphne (1997-2003)
McGill-Toolen (2004-2006)

Savarese racked up 220 wins at those four schools including 14 region titles, three state championship game appearances and one state title, which came with Daphne in 2001. His all-time coaching record was 291-98 across 33 seasons in Kansas and Alabama.

He left the sideline to become the AHSAA Executive Director, serving from 2007 to 2021. That role is why the NFHS Hall of Fame is officially inducting Savarese as an administrator.

“Coach Savarese’s impact on Alabama high school athletics will be everlasting. His leadership helped prepare the AHSAA for the future – and his focus on sportsmanship, health and safety, and student participation has been modeled nationwide.”
Heath Harmon, AHSAA Executive Director

While serving as executive director, Savarese introduced a grant plan for member schools that has paid our roughly $23 million since 2010.

He was also at the helm of big changes to the high school landscape including the creation of a seventh classification and the move of the football state championships to Bryant-Denny Stadium and Jordan-Hare Stadium.

“Like all the executive directors who have served and are still serving the AHSAA, we must strive to achieve the same goals – good sportsmanship, fair play, the greatest possible safety for our student-athletes, and development of leadership skills that will serve students beyond athletics. As leaders and role models, we cannot emphasize enough the importance of good sportsmanship, especially considering the behavioral challenges we face in society today. “
Steve Savarese

Savarese has previously been inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame (2019) and the Alabama High School Sports Hall of Fame (2010).

4H4A4514 Scaled E1738177318383 — AHSAA Super 7 will be back at Protective Stadium in 2025. (Caleb Turrentine / The Bama Buzz)

NFHS National High School Sports Hall of Fame

The National High School Sports Hall of Fame was started in 1982 to honor high school athletes, coaches, officials, administrators and others for their extraordinary achievements in high school sports.

Savarese will be the fourth AHSAA Executive Director inducted into the national hall of fame, following: