JACKSON TWP — Football has taken Don Holl many places, with the latest stop being Seneca Valley High School.

Holl, who spent the last four seasons as head coach of Cathedral Prep in Erie, was named the Raiders' next mentor at the school board meeting Monday night.

Ron Butschle, who coached the Raiders from 2004-08, resigned in December after an overall mark of 15-33 in five seasons with one WPIAL Quad A playoff appearance (2007).

SV went 4-5 last season.

"When the Seneca Valley job became open, I turned to some friends and old coaches of mine for advice," said Holl. "In the end, I thought it was an attractive job and a great opportunity for me and my family."

Holl will make the move from Erie with his wife and five children. He did confirm that he will be accepting another position within the Seneca Valley School District besides varsity football coach, but he couldn't provide any details.

"Throughout the interview process, what was really impressive were his accomplishments," SV athletic director Greg Caprara said.

Holl starred for Cathedral Prep and graduated in 1984 before playing running back and returning kickoffs at the Naval Academy from 1984-87.

His first head coaching position came in 1997 at Tunkhannock High, near Scranton, where he led a once-struggling program to the conference title game in his fourth season.

Holl returned to northwestern Pennsylvania in 2001 as offensive coordinator and assistant coach at Division II Gannon University, where his units were ranked in the nation's top 20 for three straight seasons.

Then came his return to Cathedral Prep in 2005.

In his stay with the Ramblers, Holl led the team to a 36-14 record and three consecutive District 10 Quad A titles (2005-07).

Last season, Prep finished 7-5, moving the coach's high school record to 51-41.

"I was lucky to have the opportunity to come back home, first coaching at Gannon and then my alma mater," Holl said. "It was a tough decision to leave (Cathedral Prep), but I knew it would happen eventually.

"There's a lot of good things going on at Seneca Valley: the strength and speed program, the turf and the field house are very nice."

Holl plans to get down to business as soon as he can.

"I want to meet with all of the players very soon," he said. "And, of course, I've got to get my staff together. I have a long list of guys I'm looking at right now.

"It's too early to talk about goals and expectations for next season," Holl said of the Raiders in 2009. "I can tell you that we're going to work really hard and, hopefully, each class will try to outdo the other."