Redskins Name Poythress High School Coach of the Year

The Washington Redskins announced Dec. 23 that head football coach Jim Poythress of Lake Braddock Secondary School has been named Redskins High School Coach of the Year for the 2009 high school football season.

The Redskins High School Coach of the Year program is designed to recognize and reward excellence in high school football coaching.

Coach Poythress has been coaching football for 20 years with this season being his 6th as head coach at Lake Braddock Secondary School. In his six years coaching at the school, Poythress has turned a 0-10 team into a team that finished the season 13-3 and became the 2009 Northern Region Division 6 Champions and runner-up in the Virginia State Championship game.

The Bruins finished the season ranked 6th in the Washington Post High School Football Rankings.

The Bruins' success can be credited to the attitude and work ethic Coach Poythress has instilled in them. According to Mark Martino, Director of Student Activities, Poythress emphasizes "commitment to excellence, commitment to each other, and commitment to the individual as a responsible cog in a wheel."

Poythress and his team have achieved success on and off the field. Poythress has actively involved the school's community in fundraising efforts that has culminated in $30,000 raised each year for the football program. His student-athletes also attend mission camps, help with local youth camps and are members of the Student Governing Association.

"His teams have been successful because they believe in what he teaches and what they have learned. As long as Jim Poythress is head football coach at Lake Braddock, the young men who play football, whether they are a starter, a substitute or just a member of the team, will graduate with the skills necessary to be successful in their own lives, no matter what adversity they might face" Martino said.

Each week during the 2009 high school football season, the Redskins selected one area high school head coach as the Redskins High School Coach of the Week.

Each of the coaches selected received a $1,000 donation from NFL Charities to their football program and a certificate signed by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and Redskins head coach Jim Zorn.

At the end of the high school season the Redskins selected one area coach as the Coach of the Year. Poythress was selected based on his continuing commitment towards promoting youth football, developing motivated student-athletes, his overall community involvement and overall team performance and record.

As Coach of the Year, Poythress receives a $2,000 donation from NFL Charities to his football program and a framed certificate.