Inside the Ascension of National Christian Academy
The journey for current head coach Andre Kates started well before National Christian Academy, however. As a child, football wasn’t his true passion as he’d watch his older brother on the field. It was his brother’s passion that left a lasting impact.
“As a kid, I used to hold the chains at his games and one time, I saw someone get their leg broke right in front of me. I thought ‘there was no way I was playing this game,’” Kates told AllTerrapins. But life took an unexpected turn when Kates was nine years old.
“My older brother died with a brain tumor, he played football and he always wanted me to play to me. I always told him no. He had tubes in his throat, and I’ll never forget the day when he wrote the word ‘NFL’ and pointed to himself. I was nine at the time, he ended up passing away, so I wanted to do something in remembrance of him.”
That’s when Kates turned to football, where he’d later suit up at quarterback for Friendship Collegiate Academy under then-head coach Aazaar Abdul-Rahim, the current defensive backs coach for Boston College. As Kates put the work on the field, the accolades and recruiting came shortly after.
Kates initially verbally committed to Florida following his senior year, but failed to qualify. “I didn’t know about recruiting, having grades, the NCAA eligibility center, clearing house, none of that.” He landed at Erie Community College before attending to ASA College (NY) to close out his junior college career because “it was one of the scholarship jucos available with housing. Leaving ASA as the national juco player of the year, Kates opted for Indiana among his twenty-plus scholarships. At the time, the Hoosiers’ potent offense gave Kates the confidence that he’d develop into an NFL prospect going against top talent during practice.
“They had the number one offense in the country at the time with guys like Tandon Doss, Damarlo Belcher, they had guys that went to the league so I could play against those guys every day and get better.”
After spending one season in Bloomington, the Baltimore Ravens took a chance on Kates in 2013 and brought him in as an undrafted free agent. “That’s why I wanted to work a little harder. There’s no point to quit, I’m working for something harder and bigger than me. When I got the call from Baltimore and walked into the locker room, seeing that locker with my name on it, it meant a little bit more than anything else because I did it for someone more than me.”
His career was short-lived in the NFL and after breaking his wrist and sustaining concussions, Kates hung up the cleats and turned to coaching. A recommendation letter from head coach John Harbaugh helped set him up to make the transition. “Mr. Kates stands out as greatly determined, with the desire to perform at a noticeably high level; both necessary qualities in an aspiring coach and mentor,” he wrote. “I highly recommend Mr. Kates, and am confident in his ability to make those around him better; both as leaders, and most importantly as men.”
Enter National Christian Academy. Five years ago, the program looked to build out the football program, leading the way to begin the varsity team. Initially coming in as defensive coordinator, an unexpected resignation from the then-head coach thrust Kates into a new challenge—new head coach.
“Not knowing what I was getting into, I had six kids, 20 helmets, 14 shoulder pads and no footballs. My very first season, I ended up finishing with 18 kids and now, we’re all the way up to 57.”
Florida offensive lineman Will Harrod remembers the skepticism of the program’s beginnings, but the trust that ensued set him up for success. “It was very hard, especially as a building program,” Harrod told AllTerrapins. “We had to get the right players to get the way we want it, get better as a team between the players. Every day, we had to stay competitive and push ourselves to become better, better individual players.”
It was a gradual process for Kates and company to build the program starting day one, but Florida lineman Will Harrod details the trust in Kates that jumpstarted the process as he became the first building block.
“It was a building program, basically like its first year so I was skeptical at first. But when I talked to [coach Andre] Kates, he told me what I could be like and what he wanted to do and I just put my trust in him. It’s turned out great.” The success that Harrod enjoyed helped bring then-basketball player Aaryn Parks to National Christian.
“Before I went to National Christian, I wasn’t playing football, strictly basketball. I heard about National Christian Academy going into my tenth-grade year,” Parks told AllTerrapins. “Will told me it’d be a great place to go and it’d be a good fit. I talked to coach Dre, he said just work with me and I can get you to college for free.”
After enduring instability elsewhere, rising senior defensive end Monkell Goodwine was another who entered the program looking to turn the page. Goodwine fondly remembers his first conversation with Kates, a big reason why he and his family were at peace with their decision. “When I came, we were having a meeting with me, him and my mom and he was saying ‘this guy is big.’ He asked me what’s my favorite college football school and I said I didn’t know because I wasn’t really into football like that; I just played, but I didn’t know anything about the college side.” It took time for Goodwine to find his niche along the defensive side of the ball, but as he grew longer, coaches couldn’t ignore his long-term potential.
“I played both sides of the ball, but back then, I was a really big kid. I started to grow more after my freshman year and I got longer, so the coaches saw my speed and I was more of a defensive player and tried me on defensive end. Ever since then, coach Ellis started teaching me the technique, what to do, using hands, rip moves. He taught me everything.”
Kates and the coaches take pride in providing the positivity to their kids lives. “A lot of kids, not just my team, these guys are going through alcoholism at home, drug abuse, custody battles—they’re going through it. So, if you can use football to get away from all that stuff, man, I’m willing to help. That’s why I’ll always choose scholarships over championships because I want my kids to make it,” Kates told AllTerrapins.
“In my neighborhood, not many people get a chance to make it so National Christian found out about me. [Kates] was talking to me about all the kids he has that has offers, then he said when you come in, we’re going to push you to become the best player you can be,” Louisville signee Tim Lawson added. The daily discipline instilled in the program helped put the program on the fast-track to success.
“They always made sure we were on time. Whatever we did, we always had to make sure we had that intensity and speed to drive through. That was the biggest thing because once we get to college, it won’t be anything new” Lawson added. “For a team that’s been around for three, four years, he really made us elevate our standards because it’s different now.”
“I had a few problems at home, so I sat down with the coaching staff and told them what I was going through. They want to help produce kids that don’t have support, so I thought this was really a family around here,” Oklahoma signee Aaryn Parks added. “They were able to talk to me, keep my head straight.”
The discipline instilled in the program is how they’ve made their gradual ascension within the DMV, but the support that football provides his team is what Kates and the program takes pride in.
“Coach Dre wants to bring the kids that don’t have a lot, that are hungry and want something. He’s going to demand you get it done right, but NCA, we get through it the hard way. It feels like a college workout every day,” Parks added. The lack of resources hasn’t stopped them from getting where they want to be. As they practice without a field of their own, the players own the ‘grind’ mantra that Goodwine and the team still embrace.
Though National Christian now has athletes at Florida, Louisville, Oklahoma and Texas A&M among others, their most impressive feat may have come during the 2020 cycle when all 27 seniors signed on national signing day. There’s pride in setting your team up for long-term success, but Kates made a calculated decision to run the program similarly to a college program when it comes to structure.
“I try to run it like college, where we have an academic support team that handles just the football players. We have a director of football operations [Melissa Ball] that handles everything from top to bottom in the program; even when we travel, they’ll have all their stuff waiting for them in the locker room,” Kates added. “The playbooks, the practice scripts, the preparation part of it is similar to a college program. A lot of the kids come from single-parent homes, some have never played football before, so if they get to a program like Maryland or Alabama, it won’t be a shock to them when it comes to getting ready for the next step.”
As National Christian Academy now enjoys the result of years of hard work, no one forgot how instrumental Kates was during the recruiting process.
“He helped a lot. I wouldn’t be in the spot that I’m in right now. He knew exactly what I need to do, kept on top of grades, made sure we did what was needed to get there,” Lawson admitted. “He helped me separate the real coaches from the fake coaches. He helped me realize even the small things about the recruiting process, like telling us early to look a coach in the eyes. He took us all over the country just to get us college visits,” Parks revealed. For rising senior defensive end Monkell Goodwine, Kates has helped him navigate through the early stages of arguably the most abnormal recruiting cycle to-date.
“They’ve been a huge help in the process. Coach Dre, he knows so much that I know I can ask him anything. He calls me every day about what to do, what we’re looking to do and what we have to get done. All the coaches help because they have college experience, so that helps a lot with my recruitment and to help teach me what to do when I get to school,” Goodwine added as he prepares for a National signing day announcement.
“I believe we’re the most college-ready high school in the area, whether spiritually academically, athletically. We’re the newest football program in the area and we’re making major strides. We don’t have glitz and glamour, we don’t have a field to go to, but we did have 84 college coaches, including 27 head coaches visit this past January— Mike Locksley, Nick Saban, Ed Orgeron, Lincoln Riley.”
“We’re just taking all challenges.”
