KENTWOOD, Mich. — Come August, fans will fill the stands at East Kentwood High School, cheering on the Falcons every Friday night, including their standout quarterback, Kayd Coffman. The senior is set to join Michigan State University after the season, being offered a scholarship earlier this month.
For Coffman, playing football is all about enjoyment. "It's fun. I don't think we can always describe fun. It's just like we I love doing it," he said.
Entering his senior season, the East Kentwood QB looks to continue his growth and contribute to the team's success. "I think we're gonna be smart, so I should take care of the football, and then we're gonna take shots too, and be able to make plays and know that we have to have explosives to win games," he explained.
Coffman transitioned to quarterback five years ago and appreciates the leadership aspect of the role. "It's the leadership aspect, because I have to be a manager at the end of the day," Coffman noted.
Teammates, like Charlie Nichols, recognize his leadership qualities. "He's going out of his way to do the little things, like when we were talking about film. He'll send clips to all the online men, all the receivers. He's watching the entire offense," said Nichols.
Head coach Ty Spencer, who has coached players that reached the NFL, sees similar potential in Coffman. "He's just different. He's cut from a different cloth, he reads, he's in tune with himself and others on the team, and he's open to even like the diversity that we have on the team. So he's just a great, a great person," Spencer expressed.
While Coffman has dreams of the NFL, he'll first spend more time playing college football in Michigan. Next fall, he will transition from Falcon to Spartan, a decision that brings mixed feelings in his family. "I kind of mixed bag family. Great Grandpa went to med school at Michigan. Great Uncle went to med school at State. Mom went there Michigan. First semester, transferred. Quarterback coach went to state. So it's kind of all over, and it was just the best situation for me," Coffman shared.
He fondly remembers his late great-grandfather's reaction to his commitment to Michigan State. "I was able to commit before my great grandpa passed, and able to tell him, and you expect him to just kind of be a little kind of hesitant about it, and he was the most excited," Coffman recalled.
Before heading to East Lansing, Coffman is focused on unfinished business at East Kentwood. "It's all kind of getting real, so that's just a thing of you kind of reminiscing on it right now. But you also know you have the job to do, and we're trying to go win, win a ton of games, and do this correctly," he said.
East Kentwood High School’s first game is scheduled for Friday, August 29. Coffman and the team aim to build on last season's success, which included a playoff appearance.*
