Michael “John” Saccomen was born in Clarksburg, West Virginia on May 13, 1950, the son of Frank and Stefanie Saccomen. At a very young age the family of seven relocated to Youngstown, Ohio for a few years before settling in Hubbard, Ohio during John’s early elementary years. John lived in Hubbard for the rest of his school years with his parents, brother Frank “Jr.”, and sisters Susie, Frieda, and Debbie.

The early elementary years were uneventful with respect to athletics; however, before the start of 7th grade, John’s father encouraged him and his older brother Jr. to play football. John went out for the football team and also participated in basketball. Football is what clicked though, and John’s 7th grade year was the beginning of a 10-year period in which he participated in football as an athlete.

John’s freshman year in high school is where the love of the game of football began. As a freshman, John was a two-way starter on the varsity football team and it continued that way in all four years of high school. His sophomore year he helped the Hubbard Eagles varsity football team win a conference championship and the following season he was elected co-captain alongside his brother Jr., who was one grade older. Throughout John’s high school years, he participated in track and field as a thrower. His senior year of high school was the first year for wrestling at Hubbard H.S., so the only year that John participated in wrestling. With the end of his high school career approaching and the motivation of his high school football coaches, John began receiving interest from a number of colleges.

In 1969, John chose to attend Miami University and play football for head coach Bill Mallory. As a freshman defensive lineman, John was chosen as one of the captains for the freshman team. John’s sophomore year at Miami consisted of learning and perfecting while playing behind junior All-conference defensive tackle for Dick Daugherty. Daugherty returning for his senior season (John’s junior) had the coaching staff thinking about a position change for John so as to get him on the field. John was moved to the offensive line, and started as the right offensive tackle for three games to start his junior year. Part way through the third game of that season, Daugherty received a career ending knee injury. That afternoon as the team was returning to Oxford from Cincinnati, John was summoned by coach Mallory to the front of the bus and told that he was returning to the defensive line. John started the fourth game of the season at defensive tackle, and from that point forward, John remained a starter on the defensive line for Miami University.

While working under position coach Bob Reublin and being tutored by Dick Daugherty, John earned all-conference recognition in both his junior and senior years at Miami. The last game John played in was the 1972 All-Ohio Shrine Bowl, in which Fred Martinelli was his position coach.

Following his playing career, John taught and coached at Hamilton Garfield High School for 3 years before coming to Ashland High School in 1976 to teach industrial arts, coach football, wrestling, and also volunteering to help coach track throwers. He coached wrestling for 6 years, with the last two years as head coach. During those 6 years, the Arrows were conference champs twice, and runners up three times.

On the football field at AHS in the 70’s and 80’s, John coached under Ed Bush, Dave Gray, and alongside Carl White. He also coached current AHS head football coach Scott Valentine at AHS and at AU. Following a 21-year stint at the university, John returned to AHS football from 2005 - 2012. He coached alongside Valentine, Dan Fuller, Jim Deppen, and Carl White once again. During that time, John coached 3 All-Ohio Defensive Lineman, was a part of 4 conference championships, and 5 playoff appearances, including 4 trips to the OHSAA regional finals.

Ashland High School Football: 1976-1982, 2005-2012
Ashland High School Wrestling: 1984-1990 (Head Coach 1988-1990) Ashland High School Team Accomplishments: Conference Championships: 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, State Playoffs: 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011

John’s role changed at Ashland City Schools as he moved into a Student Assistance/Counseling position and began coaching football at Ashland University. In 1983, he began at AU under head coach Fred Martinelli. Over his two stints at AU, he has coached alongside John Valentine, under Gary Keller, Lee Owens, and currently Doug Geiser. In his 33 seasons at AU, he has coached the 2nd most games in school history, only behind College Football Hall-of-Farner Fred Martinelli. At the conclusion of the 2023 football season, John had coached 341 games for the Eagles.

Ashland University Football: 1983 - 2004, 2013 - present Ashland University Team Accomplishments: 1989 - 14th in NCAA II Total Defense, 1989 - 12th in NCAA II Rushing Defense, 1989 - 7th in NCAA ti Scoring Defense, 1991- 7th in NCAA Rushing Defense, 1991 - 1st in NCAA II Total Defense, 1992 - 1st in NCAA II Rushing Defense, 1993 - 3rd in NCAA II Total Defense, 1993 - 2nd in NCAA II Rushing Defense, 1993 - 3rd in NCAA II Scoring Defense, 1997 - 8th in NCAA II Scoring Defense, 2014 -19th in NCAA II Scoring Defense, 2016 - 4th in NCAA II Scoring Defense, 2018 - 3rd in Passing Defense, 2018 - 8th in Scoring Defense, 2018 - 4th in Total Defense, 2022 - 9th in Total Defense, 2022 - 9th in Scoring Defense, 2023 - 8th in Team Sacks

Beyond his father, some of the men most respected in John’s life were his coaches and those he’s coached with. Throughout his life and his 62 years of involvement with football, these men were very much responsible for the growth and success that John enjoyed.

Outside of football, John enjoys building and fixing things, traveling, and spending time with family. John and his wife Ellen have a son, Justin, who currently lives in Bucharest, Romania with his wife Ana and their son Mihai (10). Their daughter, Rochelle, is a teacher at Hillsdale and is married to Andy Tabler, also a teacher and currently coaching defensive ends alongside John for the Eagles. They have two sons, A.J. (8) and Lucas (6).