By Gary Boskovich
Sports history buffs may recall an ad campaign from a while back that involved football and baseball superstar Bo Jackson. Jackson, who played in both the NFL and major league baseball, acted in the “Bo Knows” television commercials for Nike where he proclaimed “Bo knows football” and “Bo knows baseball.”
Those who follow football in Carmel and Hamilton County know there is a family here who understands a thing or two about the gridiron. You might just say the “Wright family knows football.”
Bud Wright, sons Kevin, Kent, and Travis and sister Cheri are a football family. They are also one of three group finalists in the NFL’s Together We Make Football contest. As a finalist, they appeared on NBC’s Today Show in November. The winner gets an all expenses paid trip to Super Bowl XLIX in Arizona on February 1st, 2015 and have the ultimate fan experience complete with on field access prior to the game.
Elder statesman Bud Wright has been the head football coach at Sheridan High School for the past 49 years. He is the winningest football coach in Indiana High School history garnering 9 state championships and multiple sectional and regional championships. He is a member of the Indiana High School Football Coaches Hall of fame.
Kevin Wright is very familiar to local residents. As the head football coach of Carmel High School, Coach Wright has taken his team to the 6A state finals the past 2 years. His 2011 Carmel team won the 5A state championship. Prior to Carmel, Kevin coached at Warren Central where his teams won 5A titles three years in a row from 2003 to 2005.
Kent Wright is head coach at Lebanon High School, where he’s guided the football team since 2001. He won the SportsLeader Character Coaches Association “Coach of Uncommon Strength Award” in 2010. Kent earned this honor for his positive influence on and off the field as a coach and an educator.
The family’s love for football doesn’t end with Bud, Kevin, and Kent. Travis Wright is an assistant football coach at Frankfort High School and Cheri (Wright) Hume is the assistant athletic director at Sheridan.
Clearly football is in the blood of the Wright family and creates a lasting bond that will always be present. Together they have 111 years of combined coaching experience. But it’s not all about the competition. They care deeply for the individuals they teach and coach so it’s a family affair both internally and externally. Throughout the years, the Wright’s have experienced joy and sorrow inside their family as well as their teams. Coaching means caring for each other, their students, and players as much as it does winning. As Cheri states, “football is a game but it’s also relationships.”
To learn more about the Wright family and view their online video, go to the NFL’s website at www.togetherwemakefootball.com. Then cast a vote to send them to the Super Bowl in February.
