The cooler temperatures weren’t lost on some of the Monsignor Farrell players gathered for a program-wide preseason practice in Oakwood on Tuesday.

“Feels like football weather,” was the catchphrase that buzzed among the varsity, JV and freshman squads.

The conditions were perfect as was the setting, with close to 75 football alumni turning up to watch the young Lions practice, and then twice that number on hand for an evening reception to honor Gary Romeo, a coach at every level for Farrell for nearly 30 years.

“I wanted to bring back our Alumni Bowl, which we had for about three years, but haven’t done in a while,” said Farrell head coach Rocco Del Priore. “So, I met with Anthony [Garofalo, the athletic director] and Greg [Guastavino, alumni coordinator] and we discussed what else we could do.”

The alternative took shape Tuesday and involved all 155 Farrell gridders at the three levels; and it culminated with honoring Romeo, whose coaching resume with the Lions began as soon as he graduated from Farrell in 1984.

“Oh my God!” said the 58-year-old Romeo, who last coached at Farrell in 2019. “When Rocco told me what he wanted to do, I was humbled and so taken aback. And I was very proud.”

Romeo was very young when he began his coaching career. How young?

Romeo had just finished his senior season of Farrell football and was still at the school when then athletic director Lou Baldassano told him to pay a visit to Coach Ben Sarullo’s office. So, before he graduated and started college at St. John’s, Romeo was tapped to coach at the age of 18.

“What did [Coach Sarullo] see in me? I’d like to think a lot of heart,” said Romeo, who played offensive guard at both the JV and varsity levels. “Every sprint we had, I wanted to win. I was just lucky enough that they saw something in me.”

Romeo was praying Sarullo would give him an easy assignment to begin with.

“I’m hoping he’s going to give me the job of coaching the offensive linemen on the freshman team. Well, he does do that,” Romeo said, “but then he also tells me to coach the defensive line, the linebackers and be the defensive coordinator. I said, ‘Coach, I’m 18!’ But he gave me a whole bunch of books and papers to read.

“The hardest thing was learning the game from every position.”

Maybe second on the difficulty list was coaching kids he was just a few years older than.

“The best piece of advice I got was to just be yourself,” said Romeo, who now lives in Toms River, N.J. “Be who you are and the kids will gravitate to that.”

Romeo was a jack-of-all-trades, usually roaming between the freshman and JV teams. He was head coach of the frosh for two different five-year stints; and helmed the Farrell JV from 2006-2008.

When asked for his favorite memory from the sidelines, Romeo — who was given a plaque and his jersey during Tuesday’s festivities — selected the 1986 JV’s CHSFL semifinal upset win at heavily favored St. Anthony’s, which had routed the Lions during the regular season.

“It was your typical David vs. Goliath setting,” recalled Garofalo, who played in that contest. “No one gave us a chance. But Gary was always able to inspire and empower guys.

“There were so many moments where he made you feel invincible, and that’s a gift. He worked you so hard, you believed you were invincible. Gary instilled us with confidence. He made us want to bring out our best because we didn’t want to let him down.”

Del Priore never got the chance to be tutored by Romeo: “When I was a freshman, he was coaching JV … and then when I was on JV, he was back coaching freshmen.” But he’s known Tuesday’s honoree since he was a seventh grader playing in the Staten Island Boys’ Football League in 1999; and he was part of some of Romeo’s staffs during the years.

“Gary demanded I give the same effort as when I played,” said Del Priore, an outstanding player with the Lions, who also started as a teenage coach. “He told me, ‘The kids don’t care how much you know, they just want to know how much you care.'”

As for Tuesday’s practice and ensuing reception: “I’m super proud. It was a beautiful event,” said Del Priore, who is entering his third year leading the Lions. “Most of the varsity boys got to shake hands and break bread with the alumni. It’s a great way to kick off the season.”

Del Priore plans on making this an annual celebration, with himself, Garofalo, Guastavino and school president Lou Tobacco likely selecting the honoree.