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Football More Than A Game For St. Frances President

Milton Kent

BALTIMORE, MD 2008-11-07

The inaugural season of football at St. Frances Academy concludes Friday with a home game against Friendship Edison of Washington. In this installment of First and Goal: Football at St. Frances, WYPR's Milton Kent introduces us to Sister John Francis Schilling, the woman who made football possible.

It's 15 minutes before kickoff on a cool October Friday night. Members of the St. Frances football team are warming up 15 minutes before their game with Mount Zion Baptist Christian School.

Meanwhile, the most important Panther has yet to arrive at St. Frances' borrowed home field at Cardinal Gibbons.

Just then, a beaten up, a 17-year-old Cadillac, with 100-thousand miles of wear, a bum air conditioner and no radio, makes its way inside the stadium.
Sister John Francis Schilling, in full habit, makes her way to the 20-yard line on the side of the field opposite the St. Frances' bench. She situates her stadium chair on the field, with a teacher in tow on her left, all prepared to root on her beloved Panthers.

"And when you meet Sister John Francis, it's like you walk out of the room, saying, Man I know her from somewhere, and I don't know where I met her before, but she just makes you feel real comfortable."
That's St. Frances head coach Mike Clay, who met Schilling, the school's president in June, and convinced her that the time had come for the 180-year-old Catholic school to start a football program.

It's a decision that Sister John Francis, as she is known at the school, believes will pay off in stronger young men, both on the field and in the classroom.

"I think if the boys continue to be committed to the discipline they've shown, if that translates over to the classroom and we see an improvement in freshman boys grades, especially the freshmen because they're usually the ones that fall by the wayside. I think that would equate a winning season for me, no matter how many wins and losses we have."

Under Sister John Francis, who has been affiliated with the school in teaching and administrative duties since 1984, the choice to add football at the last moment had to do with helping save boys from the gangs and crime that have infiltrated its East Baltimore neighborhood.

Though St. Frances is best known for its basketball programs, Schilling, who grew up a New York Giants fan in her native Rochester, realized she could help more boys by bringing football online.

"They work as a family. They have mass together before every game and a lunch or dinner. I just felt like the boys needed something, some discipline thing to get them away from all of this gang activity because they're looking for a family or a community and that's what the football team provides."

So far, the Panthers have given the school more than a social experiment. They enter tonight's regular season finale against Friendship Edison of Washington with a 4-3 record, which means they will at least finish their first season with a .500 record.

And while giving the boys a healthy outlet was a vital component for Schilling, mixing in wins and losses was important as well, just as it was when the school added basketball nearly 30 years ago.

"We weren't very successful. It took a little while and the girls were horrible for a while. I'm not expecting that it's going to happen overnight. But we have a lot of talented athletes and it won't be too long before we'll be pretty good."
Win or lose, you'll always spot St. Frances' biggest fan on the 20-yard line. I'm Milton Kent, reporting from East Baltimore for 88.1 WYPR.