Female head coach handed loss in debut

When Coolidge (Washington, D.C.) named Natalie Randolph head coach of the varsity football program March 12, the school began receiving national attention for hiring a female to coach a major high school football program. The mayor proclaimed March 12 "Natalie Randolph Day."

This past week, Coolidge was bombarded with media requests from the likes of the New York Times, HBO and ESPN, among others. But even with all the attention she received leading up to her first game as head coach, Randolph remained focused on the task at hand.

"Right now it's a football game," Randolph said before Coolidge's game against Archbishop Carroll (Washington, D.C.) Friday night. "It's the first week of school and that's our main focus. We're going to be prepared."

Although Coolidge came out of the gates firing, it was Carroll who stepped up when it counted the most. The Lions prevented Coolidge from scoring in a first and goal situation early in the first quarter, and it was all Carroll from that point forward. The Lions scored once in the first half and three times in the second to shut out Coolidge, 28-0.

"We have a lot of things to work on, but it's just a football game, it's not the end of the world," Randolph said after the game.

While the final outcome of the game didn't bode well for Randolph and her Colts, the positive impact it made on the local community was evident from the start. Most years, the game wouldn't have been covered by local media outlets. However, with each step Randolph took Friday night, a camera crew followed with a sound man dropping the microphone into every conversation Randolph had with her players.

At one point, a spectator looked around and said, "When did all these people get here?"

Not only were the stands packed, but local politicians used the event to make their rounds as D.C. elections near. Mayor Adrian Fenty handed out stickers to people walking by and addressed the crowd, congratulating Randolph for everything she had done leading up to the game.

But as the first half ended and the second half began, Carroll began to dominate the game. Coolidge suffered some key injuries on both sides of the ball, including its starting quarterback, and Carroll didn't waste any time capitalizing. After scoring to make it 13-0 with 9:06 left in the third quarter, Carroll scored against six minutes later to extend their lead to 21 points. It was at this point where things fell apart for Coolidge.

In addition to various mistakes made by the Colts, there were multiple delay of game penalties called on Coolidge and the frustration of both the players and coaches was evident. But throughout all four quarters of the game, Randolph stayed composed and never lost her cool, even with cameras documenting every move she made.

"She is a great person, and that's all that matters," Carroll coach Rick Houchens said. "She did a great job tonight, and Coolidge has a great woman leading their program."

Coolidge returns to action next weekend against Friendly High School before traveling to West Virginia to play Parkersburg South on Sept. 11.