KWTX Sports Feature: Texas School for the Deaf Football Team
Save Email Print
KWTX Sports Feature: Texas School for the Deaf Football Team
With the high school playoffs set to begin this week, football fans all around central Texas are looking forward to watching the teams play that we've been talking about all season long. But Adam Winkler has more on the most inspiring high school football team that you've never heard of.
width:200 and height: 150 and picwidth: 200 and pciheight: 150
Font Size:

(November 11, 2008)--Click on the video icon to view the story. For our deaf viewers, the closed captioning is included below.

***

Their pre-game is the same.

They stretch. Do jumping jacks in unison. They even storm onto the field like their opponent.

The first "sign" of what sets this team apart from others doesn't come until the national anthem (anthem playing). When the star spangled spanner is signed to them (anthem playing).

Every player on the team is deaf, but their love for football rings loud and clear.

Senior Linebacker Joe Conard: "I'm not disabled. I'm just deaf. I can basically do the same thing a hearing person can do and i'm okay with that"

Located just south of downtown Austin, the Texas School for the Deaf is the oldest publicly funded school in Texas.

TSD opened its doors in 1867, and it's football tradition goes back almost that far.

Nats

TSD has won 13 national deaf prep championships. Head coach Matt Thompson has been with the rangers since 1996.

He is also deaf. Four out of the five football coaches on staff are.

Head coach Matt Thompson: "We're not easy players. we're not easy to play against. We're deaf. But we can pretty much do anything we want to do once we're on the field. We play the game. We'll show you what kind of team we are, that speaks for itself. That's my goal."

Athletic Director Chris Hamilton: "We see kinds who are on a team, their confidence goes up, they carry it over to a school. We see the motivation they do well here they do well in school. The moral goes up."

As for the players, they're all not originally from Texas, but they live here now - about half of them in dorms on campus.

Senior Jarlene Giaconna was born in California. His brother is not deaf so Jarlean played on hearing teams until he moved to Texas.

Senior Jarlene Giaconna: "Oh yeah, here it's amazing. The coaches can explain to you. They can clearly tell you what the technique is, where it is, what you're doing, how to defend. They can give you everything you need so you can understand it. With my hearing coaches, they simplified everything."

Head coach Matt Thompson: "The best thing about this team is they love football. I mean what can i say they like to play. They'll do anything for football."

Senior Linebacker Joe Conard: "The only difference we have is we can't hear. We have runners. Hearing people can run. We can read. Hearing people can read. The only difference is we can't talk. We cant get behind a player and start doing stuff. We have to get a visual so we can get a sign, but basically football is football."

And after all this IS Texas, and they don't make movies about our high school football "sounds". We're known for the friday night "'lights"

And it's on that stage, that the Rangers will continue to paint a picture, that even to them...is worth a thousand words.

Adam Winkler, News 10 sports.>

Latest Comments

Posted by: Jay Location: Buckholts on Nov 22, 2008 at 10:05 PM

Thank You for providing the story about the TSD Rangers football team. I have a brother you attended TSD 14 years and showed him the video at my home this past weekend. It brought back many good memories when he played in 1979 - 1983. I notice that TSD is finally playing teams more of there equal. When my brother Jeff played, he played 1-A teams like Thorndale, Bartlett, Thrall, Florence, Liberty Hill during the early 1980's. They had a hard time competing with the more established schools. But in 1982,they were one win away from making the playoffs. Almost a miracle season falling short to Bartlett by 3 points. I remember watching the kids play and it was very emotional to see how hard they played every down and give it 100 per cent every play. Thank you again for this story Mr. Winkler provided to the public to witness this football program. The kids you attend TSD remain a very close knit group and stay closely in contact with each other. Text msg was a miracle invention for them.
[ Report Abuse ]
Posted by: Teresa Location: Hearne on Nov 12, 2008 at 09:07 AM

Thankyou for the article about the Texas School for the Deaf Rangers. My 13 year old son who is deaf attends TSD and absolutely loves it. It is good to have support from the media in showing the world that people who are deaf are just as normal as people who are hearing.
[ Report Abuse ]
More Stories
Job of the Week
Click now to see hundreds of other jobs on Job Board TV!


Automotive Sales Professional - Looking for a new, exciting career in automotive sales? Join John McClaren Chevrolet in McGregor and work for the #1 Chevy Truck Dealer in all of Central Texas.

Also, take a look at the most recent jobs posted to Job Board TV at KWTX.com: View More Jobs.
AP Video