"There’s not better job for me in the world than being the head coach of the Goblins.” - Coach Chris Keylon
The search for Harrison Football Coach Joel Well’s replacement has ended and it results in welcoming back a former member of the Goblin coaching staff, Chris Keylon.
The selection of the new head coach was done by a committee which included Coach Wells.
Athletic Director Chris Pratt said, “we had a committee who did all of the screening and interviewing and ultimately decided who we were going to recommend for the position.”
Keylon served as the defensive coordinator for the Goblins and assisted with other athletic programs during his seven years at the school. He left Harrison in the summer of 2021 to take the head coach position with Riverview’s football program. That was his first year as a head football coach.
Pratt spoke to the excitement felt by the department saying that Keylon was the clear choice out of the 14 applicants they received.
“We’re excited, we can’t wait for him to get started,” Pratt said.
“What I told everyone in Harrison when I interviewed for the job is I have an emotional passion for the community as a whole,” Keylon said, “there’s not better job for me in the world than being the head coach of the Goblins.”
Keylon spent six years working under Coach Wells and said the first thing Wells did when he came to Harrison was, “setup a consistent structure and he eliminated processes or activities that don’t directly impact football or the development of the kids.”
He hopes to continue that structure with some small adjustments.
He took that structure with him to Riverview and says it can produce great success over time. He says that being a head coach is a nothing more than a leadership position, something that he has a lot of experience in with football as well as the business world being a former Vice President at FedEx and president of another company in his past career.
Keylon says he has a guiding principle he follows in his life and tells his players. The acronym is ONE and it stands for:
- On Time – “Being on time is a huge indicator of performance or lack thereof,” he says.
- Knowledge – “Just have knowledge, know what you’re supposed to do,” is his second point.
- Effort – “If you do those three things you have a chance to be successful,” his final principle.
He said the kids are Riverview really bought into that guidance and it led to a good year.
Keylon also talked about how important it is to him to support the other athletic programs at the school.
“I’ll support all of our sports, Coach Stahler’s Basketball team, Coach Klott’s basketball team, coach Rodden’s baseball team, Coach Cross’s track team, Coach Pratt’s Soccer team. I think that’s really important to support all of our kids and all of our programs,” he said, “it’s a no-brainer that those kids really appreciate you coming and supporting them and being there for them.”
Coach Pratt says Keylon’s duties at Harrison will begin very quickly, and preparation for the 2022 football season will be start soon.
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