As Hope Windmiller, mother of junior quarterback Skyler Windmiller, prepares herself for a fast-paced Friday, she knows that it is not just a typical weekday.
After spending two hours chalking 10-15 football players’ driveways with positive messages, she moves on to being present at the field house by the time school is released. While simultaneously getting the concessions stand up and running, organizing the tailgating and painting fellow mothers’ faces with their son’s numbers, Hope knows what the football program means to everyone involved.
“We realize how fast the boys grow up and go away. We hold on to every moment because you don’t get them back,” Hope said. “From a parental side, we understand our kids will be gone in a blink and we take it in by living and breathing football for these boys.”
Hope is just one of the 60 mothers who offer support for her son and the other players not only on game days, but throughout the season as well.
“[The football moms] definitely help me take care of that behind the scenes stuff. It’s a tremendous help, and they do a very good job of it,” head coach Joel Applebee said.
One of the most crucial jobs the mothers take on is the Thursday team dinners. As hungry varsity players trickle into the cafeteria after practice, the mothers have spent the week putting together massive amounts of food and supplies, including over 60 pounds of pasta, numerous gallons of water and individual salads for every player. Even as mothers are up to their elbows in pasta, they all seem to keep a huge smile on their faces.
“Football moms are fun. We have a great time together, we do fun activities outside of school, we get together socially,” Lisa Miles, mother of junior linebacker Blake Miles, said. “It’s just a really big peer group of women who have something in common. It’s wonderful.”
As the season carries on, the players have enjoyed seeing their mothers associate on such a personal level.
“It’s really great to have all the moms involved because it shows us players that they love what we love,” Skyler said. “The football moms do a great job of organizing everything and planning. If they didn’t get along and spend so much time together, then the possibilities would be limited.”
As the football program continues to adapt itself and the community to a new coach, the football moms know exactly how they will continue to improve as a group, as well.
“You should expect lots and lots of growth. We want to get lots more moms involved,” Dava Holden, mother of junior offensive lineman, Knute Holden said. “The more involved, the more the program grows. Everyone has a blast doing this so we’re just trying to grow as a program.”
