Marian is hiring Joe Calderone as its new head football coach, according to a source with knowledge of the situation.

Calderone has been serving as the offensive line coach at Mishawaka, his alma mater. He previously served one year as an assistant at Marian and his family has strong ties to Marian.

“I am extremely humbled and honored for the opportunity to lead the Marian Knights on the gridiron,” Calderone said in a statement released by the school. “This has been a dream of mine that my family and I have been working on for a while. All glory to God for this opportunity. I am ready to hit the ground running and establish a gritty, fast and physical approach on the field. The work has already started and I can’t wait to start making connections!”

While this will be the first head coaching job for Calderone, he has a strong pedigree having served as an assistant under Michael Davidson, Keith Kinder and Bart Curtis, who he also played for at Mishawaka. Joe’s dad James is a Marian alum and former basketball coach for the Knights.

“We are extremely excited to have Joe Calderone as the next head coach of the Knights,” Marian Athletic Director Steve Ravotto said. “He brings years of experience and a lot of energy to the program. We look forward to Joe continuing to build on the past successes and infuse the program with his energy and vision.”

Mishawaka players and parents, past and present, flooded the Sports Michiana Facebook page with overwhelming praise for Calderone and the hire.

Calderone takes over for Davidson who stepped down last month after eight seasons.

Marian was 4-8 last season.

Calderone and his wife Loren have three kids.