Fresh off coaching the 2023 spring football season at Fairhaven Middle School, Hailey Thomas felt confident she was figuring out the sport. However, during one of her first summer football practices as an assistant coach for Sehome High School, her mind quickly changed.
“I was walking to where I thought I was supposed to be for the drill and I got a ball to the side of my head,” Thomas said. “That’s when I knew football was hard. But I now run that drill and am great at running it.”
Thomas is one of five Sehome varsity football assistant coaches for the 2024–25 season. Although she is new to the sport, her skills in weightlifting drew the attention of Sehome head football coach Brian Young, who acknowledged his team needed guidance in conditioning.
This season, Thomas helped lead Sehome’s playoff run. She’ll now head a girls flag football team beginning in January.
“Hailey is a great coach,” Young said. “I told her to understand you are a female coach and you have to establish your credibility. She is treated with the same dignity and respect and does not escape the coaching jokes when we clown ourselves.”
Sehome is one of 410 high school football programs in the state and one of 63 in the 2A classification. Thomas is one of three female coaches listed on a football roster in the 2A classification, according to SBLiveWA, MaxPreps, league and school websites.
Olivia Keske is listed as an assistant football coach for Pullman’s varsity team and Trish Miller is a volunteer coach for Squalicum’s C-Team.
“It is cool what I am doing and I am grateful, but it is hard,” Thomas said. “There are moments where I go home and think about what I am doing. I will never see someone who looks like me on the sideline in my position.”
The 20-year-old coach is also a full-time student at Western Washington University, an Olympic weightlifter, personal trainer and the head strength and conditioning coach at Sehome. Thomas, who grew up in Southern California and graduated from San Clemente High School, wanted to play football but was persuaded not to compete alongside the teenage boys.
After graduating in 2022, she went back to her high school and helped the team in the weight room while learning about the sport on the field. Thomas moved to Bellingham in 2023 to begin college. She reached out to Sehome High School and Young responded a couple of days later.
“One of the important things we were lacking was the physical work to prepare for football,” Young said. “Her background in weightlifting is awesome for these young men and sets a standard for them.”
Young added Thomas needed to coach other aspects of the team instead of being only a weightlifting trainer. Thomas decided to coach the defensive backs for varsity and junior varsity. Thomas’ role for the Mariners is helping with the weightlifting program and defensive back drills for the varsity team while calling defensive coverages in the JV games.
Even though the Sehome community loves having Thomas around, she is still battling the stereotypes from their opponents.
“It is a fight to be respected,” Thomas said. “A lot of times, I won’t be looked at, I won’t be talked to or my hand won’t be shaken or someone will talk over me. There are a lot of girls who would love to play this sport and I want to break into it and make it a space for everybody.”
Thomas will be providing the sport to high school girls at Sehome in the winter when Bellingham Public Schools start girls flag football Jan. 6, 2025. Sehome Athletic Director Colin Cushman saw the impact Thomas made in the weight room and on the field and offered her the job.
“Even though I have a lot to learn about a new sport, being somebody that is relatable is important to me,” Thomas said. “I want to give them the opportunity to not be intimidated and feel safe and have fun.”
Young will be preparing Thomas for the winter season while a few players on the boys team will be assistant coaches for the flag team. Although Young will not be coaching alongside Thomas, he knows how kids can be impacted when they have coaches who look like them.
“When I took my teaching job at Squalicum, the principal told me, ‘Could you imagine how you will impact other students of color when you walk in?’” said Young, who is Black. “It was a mindful thing for Hailey and for the girls to see a female coach that coaches the guys.”
Thomas hopes her coaching career can help her become a role model for younger female athletes. She also hopes this can help her boost future plans of either being a strength coach or data analyst for a collegiate or professional sports team.
“I want people to not be intimidated to start something new and be OK if you mess something up,” Thomas said. “I have messed up so many times but I will find a way to do it.”
Nick Zeller-Singh is CDN's sports reporter; reach him at nickzellersingh@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 104.
