One of the most accomplished coaches in collegiate wrestling, Santoro brings more than three decades of coaching experience and a proven track record of developing champions at the collegiate, national, and international levels. Most recently, Santoro served as the Lawrence E. White '64 Head Wrestling Coach at Lehigh University, where he built one of the nation's premier programs and established the Mountain Hawks as a perennial contender on the national stage..

During his tenure at Lehigh, Santoro led the program to multiple EIWA team championships, earned numerous conference and national coaching honors, coached NCAA champions and dozens of All-Americans, and guided the Mountain Hawks to consistent top national finishes. Prior to his success at Lehigh, Santoro served as head coach at the University of Maryland, where he led the Terrapins to their first ACC Championship in 35 years and was named ACC Coach of the Year.

As an athlete, Santoro was one of the most accomplished wrestlers in University of Pittsburgh history. A four-time NCAA All-American and two-time NCAA Champion, he later represented the United States on the international stage as a four-time member of the U.S. National Team and an Olympic Team alternate. He was inducted into the University of Pittsburgh Athletics Hall of Fame in 2022.