Frisco Heritage's Resurgence

When you are in an Independent School District that has 12 high schools competing in athletics, sometimes it’s hard to stand out. In football, when you think of Frisco I-S-D, the names Lone Star, Wakeland, Reedy and Frisco High are the teams that roll off the tongue. The others are often overlooked. Going into this week, Frisco Heritage was off to a 6-1 start. Clinching their first winning season in 7 years. However, to the casual fan, the Coyotes are still not seen as a threat….and that’s just fine with them.

When Kenneth Gilchrist took the head coaching job in 2018, the first thing he did was scrap the playbook. The Coyotes had been a team that would light up the scoreboard, but never quite able to make stops. Gilchrist has put an emphasis on defense and this year, it’s really paying off. Heritage has only allowed just over 9 points a game in their 6 wins as the defense has finally embraced their role.

One of the pleasant surprises on the defense has been junior, Obi Udom (Eww-dum). The Coyotes defensive end gave up on football after the 8th grade to concentrate on basketball. Coach Gilchrist kept seeing the 6 foot 3, 235 pound power forward in basketball practice and just knew he could make a difference on the gridiron.

The persistence paid off as Udom finally decided to play both sports and he’s been a problem for opposing offenses ever since. He has 5 sacks on the season to lead the Coyotes. Obi has rededicated himself to the sport and now can see a different path to success at the next level.

Coach Gilchrist calls Obi a blank canvas. With very little bad habits to unteach, Udom is getting better and his love for football grows every day.