ERLANGER, Kentucky – After years of work, St. Henry High School fielded a football team for the first time Monday night.
The team defeated Dayton in a junior competition in front of a packed crowd.
Head coach Tim Odom said his job leading up to the first game was to turn the boys into competitive young men.
“It’s extremely important to make them better men, and our job is to make them the best versions of themselves and make them the best men they can be,” Odom said.
Off the field, the St. Henry family of parents and students welcomed the first game with a tailgate party – food and cornhole included.
Jeremy Armbruster celebrated the fact that his son Gavin, a twelfth-grader, was able to play football for his school for the first time.
“It’s almost surreal,” said Armbruster. “It’s a bit like Christmas morning.”
Chris Cooks was a member of the board and responsible for putting together the team.
He said the school needs a new artificial turf field in 2022 and struggled with the decision to clear it for the football field during construction.
Cooks said once they lined it up, the decision was made and work began to raise the funds, buy the equipment and staff the team.
“A lot of work, a lot of hours, a lot of fundraising, it cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to equip these children,” he said.
Headmaster Grant Brannen said the first game was a good step in the right direction to make the team known in the region.
“We’re going to build a winning program. We want to build a championship program,” Brannen said. “It’s a great start, it’s great tonight, but we want to build a winning program.”
The school plans to field its own football team in 2025.
