Wyoming’s newest high school football program will be in Casper.
Casper Christian School, which opened last year, will offer athletics for the first time this year, starting with six-man football and basketball.
CCS became a member of the Wyoming High School Activities Association and will play a sub-varsity six-man schedule this year. The Mountaineers will play Midwest in Week 0 to start the season for both programs. CCS football coach Ryan Harrison said via email the rest of the program’s schedule is in flux, as no other games are set and “we have become many teams’ backup options if another game on their schedule falls through.”
WHSAA Commissioner Ron Laird said via email Thursday that Casper Christian School will spend this year and next year playing a sub-varsity schedule, “and then will need to show that they have the numbers to sustain varsity level numbers.”
Harrison said about 10 students will make up the football team to start the season, but more could show up as the season starts. He said about 60 students will be enrolled to start the year across the seven grades (6-12) that the school offers. That is up from the 40 students enrolled last year, the school’s first. Home-school students will also be eligible to play sports.
He said he envisions the program growing as the school grows.
“Our expectation is that we will not be a six-man program forever,” Harrison said. “Casper is large enough that we have a lot of room to grow and I foresee us growing to the nine-man and eventually the 11-man levels at some point. Who knows how long that will take and what type of success we will have at the six-man level before that point, but I’m excited to see how everything turns out this year.”
Right now, Harrison said the only other sport on the horizon is boys basketball, but it too will play at the sub-varsity level to start. However, middle-school football and basketball, as well as volleyball, are also in the planning stages.
“At the size we’re at right now, it’s just about the interest our students have and if we can field a team or not,” he said.
CCS shares its building with the Restoration Church on the east side of Casper. It offers classes for sixth through 12th graders.
–patrick