DE PERE — The De Pere Redbirds football team had a big hole to fill with the loss of their now former head coach Chad Michalkiewicz who departed for Kimberly.
Former Wisconsin Badgers team-captain Ben Strickland was named the head coach a few weeks ago.
He spent the last four seasons with Madison Edgewood – two years as an offensive coordinator and two years as a defensive coordinator. When the De Pere job came open and he noticed nobody had been hired after the first round of interviews, he decided to apply for the gig.
“There’s certain programs in the state that you just kind of pay attention to and when I had seen that they hadn’t hired anybody yet, I threw my hat in the ring,” Strickland said.
He took notice of the Redbirds program when he was the recruiting coordinator for the Badgers almost a decade ago. Strickland will be taking over a team that won the Fox River Classic conference last year and will be returning some core pieces.
“The type of success they’ve had the last couple years – took notice, saw the type of kids and the way they play football,” Strickland said. “That got me excited and got me even more excited once I accepted the job of meeting the kids and coaches and seeing the type of people that were here. Excited to build a consistent winner, but really give the kids and coaches and community a great experience as part of the football program.”
One thing the new Redbirds head coach wants is a coaching staff full of guys who are teachers first.
“Guys that want to be mentors and identify as exemplary leaders,” he said. “I think that’s the type of coach that I try to embody and try to hold myself to that standard and looking for guys that want to do the same. With the kids, the people that are driven to maximize their potential.”
Speaking of leaders, star quarterback Gabe Herman who will be a senior next fall has already made a strong impression on his new head coach
“Gabe is a kid that when I first came here and got to meet the whole team, he was the first guy that shook my hand – made sure everybody else got up and shook my hand,” said Strickland. “That told me a lot about the type of influence he has in the school and with his teammates.”
Every coach loves to win, but Strickland emphasized that he is looking to build young men, guide them and give them a great experience while helping them build lifelong relationships
“The winning takes care of itself as long as you pour into the kids and pour into the community,” he said
Strickland has had coaching stints with the Badgers and at Florida Atlantic university.
When he played for the Badgers you might remember his blocked punt in 2005 against the Minnesota Gophers in the end zone that was recovered for a touchdown in the final minute of that game to give Wisconsin a lead they would not give back.
