ENDWELL, N.Y. (WIVT/WBGH) – The Maine-Endwell football program has had incredible success over the past 15 seasons under Head Coach Matt Gallagher, who most recently led the Spartans to a perfect 13-0 record and their second straight state championship.

This past weekend, the NFL announced Gallagher as the NFC’s recipient of the Don Shula High School Coach of the Year award.

“I’m super pumped,” Gallagher said. “And hopefully it shines the light on Maine-Endwell which it should.”

The High School Coach of the Year from the NFL, an award based on not just on field success, which the Spartans have found plenty of, but also based on a number of other factors including a dedication to the community.

“They’re the ones that support us,” Gallagher said. “They’re the ones that these guys are entrenched in the entire community, it’s not just the football program, it’s not just the football team it’s the entire community that these guys have to represent.”

Winning does of course play a factor, but Gallagher credits the people around him for all of the success the football program has found.

“The support that we get from the district, then of course our coaching staff, most importantly our players,” Gallagher said. “That put the time in, that work hard, and more importantly represent Maine-Endwell the way it’s supposed to be out in the community.”

Winning the award of course comes with some perks including a prize for the program as a whole, and also a trip to last Sunday’s NFL Pro Bowl in Las Vegas for Gallagher, where he had fun taking in the highest level of play football has to offer.

“The atmosphere of the ultimate part of football, the NFL, so that was impressive,” Gallagher said. “And being able to kinda here them talk about football, that it what I enjoyed more than anything.”

Gallagher will also be a guest at Sunday’s Super Bowl, where he hopes he can learn a thing or two to help the Spartans in the future.

“Hopefully I get a chance to talk to some of the coaches,” Gallagher said. “Just to kinda hear some of the things that they do and say and what they’re gonna try to get across to their players.”

Gallagher will also be at Thursday’s NFL Honors where he will be recognized.