Coolidge High School's football coach hasn't made an inaugural game plan yet, but is already on the cover of a major publication.
That's what happens when you're believed to be the nation's only current female head coach of a high school varsity football team.
So when people pick up their Sunday paper this weekend across the country, they'll see a PARADE cover story on Natalie Randolph, D.C.'s new coaching sensation.
The 30-year-old Sidwell grad attended the University of Virginia on a track scholarship but eventually turned her love of football into a spot on the D.C. Divas women's team roster.
She had been an assistant coach at another D.C. school when she was asked to apply for the Coolidge position. She eventually beat out two former NFL players and an Army brigadier general for the gig, according to the PARADE article.
"All the other candidates were selling themselves, and Natalie was the only one who talked about the students and what she’d do for them," recalls Derrick Mickels, a member of the hiring committee and a nonprofit education consultant who helps run Coolidge. “We were like, hands-down, she’s the choice. She’s the real deal."
Archbishop Carroll will be the first team to test Randolph's head coaching chops Aug. 27.
