Late afternoon on Friday, March 11, both JV and Varsity football players were summoned to the auditorium. Few players had heard anything about this sudden gathering. Once everyone had settled in, athletic director Aaron Minger promptly introduced the players’ new varsity head football coach as Chris Dawson.

  Coach Dawson had a big message in his short time. He told the players a little bit about his past.

  “I’m home. I really love Broughton,” Dawson said about his new introduction as head coach.

  He takes over the reigns after being an assistant coach at the Gilman School in Baltimore, Maryland. Gilman finished 13th in the USA Today Super 25 national high school rankings last season, and won 10 out of the last 14 conference championships. Furthermore, he also spent time as a basketball coach and English teacher at Gilman.

  Dawson is no stranger to Broughton. He is a member of the 2001 class at Broughton and served as starting quarterback for the football team for two seasons. While at the helm, he notched all conference honors and passed for over 2,000 yards.

  Dawson also lettered in baseball. At the end of his athletic career representing the Caps, he had broken a numerous amount of school records for football in a single season such as completions, passing yards, and touchdowns. After graduating, Dawson had gained interest from various Division-I schools, but his best offer was a full ride from the Wofford Terriers.    Unsatisfied with the dysfunctional offense at Wofford, he decided to transfer as a walk on to Tulane, a school that had previously showed interest but had not offered him a full ride. Two seasons of hard work and determination earned him the captain title in 2005, his senior season. Dawson majored in sociology while playing football, and made his studies a priority during the season as he was named to the Conference USA All-Academic team in 2003, 2004, and 2005.

  Dawson spoke continually about his love for the game and how he uses football as a catalyst to turn boys into good men.

  “That’s what a football team is. It’s a bunch of men working for a cause greater than themselves,” Dawson said.

  He did not promise conference championships, perfect seasons, or state titles. He simply left the student athletes with the choice to be the foundation and start of a new era in Broughton football history.