Kevin Colbert is still very busy after retiring as general manager of the Pittsburgh Steelers in May 2022, capping out a 22-year tenure with his hometown team.
Not only is he still involved with the organization, assisting retired players in their transition to life beyond football, but he has just added a new function to his resume, this time outside of the organization.
Colbert disclosed during a recent visit on the North Catholic Athletics Podcast that he works as a consultant for North Catholic under Reverend Charles Bober.
“When he was named interim president, he requested me to be a member of his transition team. And I simply try to help him as much as I can because he’s quite busy being the pastor of such a large church,” Colbert said of his new post as North Catholic consultant. “And it’s my pleasure and honor to be able to help him here because he’s doing everything for the right reasons.”
Colbert was also heavily involved in the hunt for North Catholic’s new football coach for the 2023 season. North Catholic hired Chris Rizzo, providing the Trojans an experienced coach and a Pittsburgh local to succeed the legendary Pat O’Shea. Colbert helped North Catholic locate Rizzo, a Bethel Park native, in Arizona.
Colbert, a North Catholic alumni, parallels Rizzo’s hiring and search to the one he conducted in 2007 for Mike Tomlin. That one turned out fairly well.
“We did the same thing to Coach Rizzo. We were familiar with the values of North Catholic. “We understood Coach Rizzo’s values and thought it was a good fit,” Colbert added. “So I believe that’s a significant part of it. The X’s and O’s are certainly crucial, but they aren’t the most important because this person must be able to lead. And sometimes, if they haven’t been in that situation, you don’t know, so you just make an educated guess.”
Colbert is well-versed in culture and leadership, having overseen the Steelers for 22 years and working with Hall of Fame coaches like as Bill Cowher and Tomlin. It helped him build his own possible Hall of Fame career as an executive, and it continues to benefit him in his job not only with North Catholic but also within the Steelers’ organization, functioning as a leader and culture setter for post-playing days Steelers.
