Plymouth State University

Paul Castonia begins his 23rd season atop the Plymouth State football program in the Fall of 2025. Easily the longest tenured coach in program history, Castonia is also the program’s all-time leader in wins, recording his 100th career victory by topping VTSU Castleton, 21-6, last October. He has led the Panthers to five postseason appearances.
 
Castonia coached the Panthers through their final season in the Freedom Football Conference in 2003, two years of being a Division III Independent (2004-05), seven years in the New England Football Conference (2006-12) and helped usher Plymouth State in as a member of the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) in 2013.
 
A two-time MASCAC Champion’s Choice Coach of the Year in 2016 and 2017, the Joe Yukica Chapter of the National Football Foundation recognized Castonia's impact on New England college football in 2015, presenting him with the Andy Mooradian Award for Outstanding Contribution to Amateur Football.
 
In 2017, the Panthers won seven straight league games to capture the program's first MASCAC title and clinch a spot in the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament for the fifth time in program history. PSU also made an NCAA Tournament appearance under Castonia’s guidance in the 2008 season following a perfect 7-0 mark in the NEFC.
 
Castonia has also lifted the Panthers to three Bowl games, capturing the New England Bowl title in 2022 and the ECAC North Atlantic Bowl title in 2007, while also competing in the ECAC Northeast Bowl in 2009.
 
Castonia inherited a team that was winless in 2002, but he quickly turned things around. Starting in 2007, the team posted four straight winning seasons with a combined record of 33-10 and three consecutive post-season berths.
 
The Panthers won the ECAC North Atlantic Bowl to finish 9-1 in 2007, then followed with a 10-2 mark in 2008, winning the Bogan Division title (7-0), the NEFC Championship and earning a berth in the NCAA Division III Tournament. Castonia led the Panthers to an 8-3 record in 2009 with a third straight post-season berth with a trip to the ECAC Northeast Bowl.
 
Following their NEFC run, the Panthers joined the MASCAC in 2013. After opening MASCAC play with three losing seasons, Castonia’s squad has finished .500 or better in league action every year since 2016, going 40-25 in conference games and 50-31 overall.
 
Castonia was named NEFC Boyd Division Coach of the Year in 2007 and New England Division II/III Coach of the Year in 2008. They were well-deserved honors for a coach who had long paid his dues with previous stints at Divisions 1-A, 1-AA, 2 and 3.
 
When Castonia arrived in 2003 as the 11th head coach in the program’s history, he brought experience from previous coaching stops at the University of Rhode Island, University of Maryland, Hartwick College, Ferrum College, the University of Massachusetts Boston and Bryant University.
 
Since his arrival, Castonia has been adamant that the program's focus is on more than just wins and losses. While the Panthers no doubt aim to having a winning program year in and year out, being good students and quality citizens are equally as important.
 
"We recruit young men who want to graduate, and who are willing to work hard to be successful in the classroom and on the football field," says Castonia, a 1986 graduate of Trinity College (Conn.) who earned a Master’s degree from the University of Rhode Island in 1989. "We try to put them in a position to succeed both as students and as football players."
 
For proof of Castonia's commitment to grooming well-rounded student-athletes, look no further than the academic achievements of his players. During his tenure, 567 students have earned All-Academic honors, with another 58 claiming spots as National Football Foundation (NFF) Hampshire Honor Society members.
 
Castonia says the biggest rewards for him don’t come on Saturdays in the fall, but on graduation day in the spring.
 
"It’s very gratifying when a guy graduates and is excited about pursuing his chosen career," says Castonia, "and he is using the habits and lessons he learned and developed on the football field in those endeavors."
 
Castonia and his wife Leslie reside in Ashland.