Saturday, October 2, 2010

Congrats to Natalie Randolph and the Coolidge Colts

I woke up to a message this morning that the Coolidge Colts won their first game, a victory over Anacostia by a score of 48-12.

Per Alan Goldenbach at the Washington Post:
'She ran the down the 50-yard line toward the Anacostia sideline and avoided it, but then Indians Coach Terry Dixon stopped her to offer congratulations. That allowed George Weaver the moment he and his Coolidge teammates had waited six weeks for - a chance to douse their coach in honor of her first victory, a 48-12 home triumph over the winless Indians (0-5).

"It means everything to me," Randolph said. "What they get out of it, I get out of it. I'm ecstatic for them. They needed it."

As the first female football coach in the Washington area - and one of just a handful in the nation - Randolph attracted unprecedented media attention, and it wore on the team as it lost its first five games.

On Friday, the Colts pulled away in the second half, allowing the excitement to build and build with each touchdown. Senior running back Chris Strong ran for four scores."

The first time I sat down with Randolph, she was working on the game plan for her first game on the computer in her empty classroom. We talked while she continued to work, so she seemed a little distracted from time to time.

In my preparations to meet her, it became obvious that the question on everybody's mind was -- who would be the first male coach to "lose to a girl" and what would that be like for him? (The horror!) I felt compelled to ask her about it, even though 'Battle of the Sexes' type things bore me.

She stopped, looked away from her computer and said that she thought that was a pretty stupid thing for people to be thinking about. She wondered herself, do those coaches not mind losing to other men? Why is losing ever acceptable? She didn't want to lose to anybody.

Randolph and her team endured several losses - five - before getting this first win under their belts. I am thrilled for her, for the players, the coaching staff, and the administration at Coolidge. I hope there are a lot more wins in the Colts' future.