Since 1975 only two men have held the reigns to the Land O’ Lakes football program.

Dan Sikes opened the program, coaching just two seasons. In 1977, his assistant John Benedetto took over with his tenure ending this past season.

Matthew Kitchie becomes the third.

“First of all I’m extremely excited to be part of a tradition-rich program,” Kitchie said. “It is an honor for me that I was picked for this position. I’m a younger guy and I am not lost on the fact this is a well respected position in this community and there’s a little bit of pressure on it and it’s important for me to do a great job.”

Kitchie, 31, was the head football coach at Saint Stephen’s Episcopal School in Bradenton since 2006. There, he started the middle school and high school programs. The Bradenton Southeast graduate was the Video Coordinator and gradate assistant at Eastern Kentucky University from 2005-06. Prior to that, he was an assistant at Bradenton Southeast from 2001-05.

Kitchie played for the 1993 and 1994 Bradenton Southeast state championship teams as a quarterback. He then went on to play at Newberry College in South Carolina. During his time at Newberry, Kitchie was an All-South Conference Academic team selection.

He is slated to complete his Master’s Degree in Sports Administration in August.

Kitchie, who was one of at least 60 applicants, takes over for Benedetto, who guided the Gators for 32 seasons. During that time, Benedetto led the program to 13 district titles, including the last three seasons; 17 playoff appearances, including the last 12 seasons; six Sunshine Athletic Conference titles and two appearances in the regional finals. During his tenure, Benedetto collected a 196-149 record.