The Green Bay Packers have announced that Jordan Hansen of Prescott High School in Prescott, Wis., has been named the Packers High School Coach of the Week.
Hansen, in his fifth year as the varsity head coach of Prescott, has his team out to an undefeated 7-0 record in a tough Middle Border conference. The Cardinals are currently ranked fourth in the state in their division by wissports.net and face a huge conference showdown Friday for at least a share of the conference title. As the regular season wraps up and the postseason looms, the 7-0 Prescott Cardinals, led by their senior class, have big aspirations.
"We have a really good senior group of leaders that understand how to be servant leaders and not just serve themselves, but serve each other and make each other better every day, as well as the people underneath them," said Hansen. "That group has put a lot of effort in to try to be great and turn this [program] around... They have really driven this thing, and we have a really good junior class that has followed along, and it has been a ripple effect throughout our whole program. Our conference is tough, and we had to put some time and effort in. We've taken our lumps, but they didn't give up. They are still grinding and getting better. We have some lofty goals to try and accomplish this year. We're 7-0, but we're not done yet. We look forward to seeing what we can do at the end of the year."
The Cardinals have also placed an emphasis on making an impact in the Prescott community.
"One thing we do is really try to make a great experience for other [Prescott] schools," said Hansen. "On Fridays, our players go down and welcome all kids in all the buildings. They open up the car doors for them and welcome them into the building. Talk to them. Hang out in the classroom with them, maybe read a book or play a game with them. We also have players that, after practice, go coach flag football teams, and really try to help build that community and the program up as kids are coming through." "Whenever there's an opportunity that presents itself, we step up and try to help out where we can."
Hansen grew up in Somerset, Wis., and graduated from Somerset High School in 2010. He played defensive end and offensive tackle for Somerset under Wisconsin Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame member Bruce Larson. Upon graduating from Winona State University in 2015, he began coaching as an offensive assistant at Holmen High School for five years before becoming the defensive coordinator for two years. Hansen was an assistant coach at Osceola High School for one year before becoming the head coach of the Prescott Cardinals, the position he's held for the past five years.
Hansen is honored to win the Coach of the Week award but is quick to give credit to everyone involved.
"I think it's more of a team award of all our players, coaches, and community as well. When I first started here there was a lot of work to be done and everyone has put that work in. Everybody has done their part, and I just try to help drive the ship in the right direction. You have to have the pieces behind there, and we have great players and great coaches, so it has been a really fun season to get this thing turned around."
Hansen and his staff oversee a program of 55 players with all of them having the opportunity to suit up for varsity games. His assistants include Eric Brown, Michael Koch, Ian Ruble, Jay Bartsch, Jake Holub, Matthew Voeltz, Payton Bartsch, Mason Bartsch, Jeremy Kerg, Weston Bartsch and Jake Block. In addition to coaching, Hansen is a physical education and health teacher at Prescott High School. He and his wife, Erika, have a son, Camden, and a daughter, Brynn.
About the Green Bay Packers High School Coach of the Week Program:
The Packers will recognize one outstanding high school coach as their 'Coach of the Week' winner during the 2024 high school football season. Winners are awarded several items and privileges, including a $1,000 donation to the school's football program from the Green Bay Packers and the NFL Foundation, as well as recognition of the award on Packers.com, Wissports.net and Wifca.org.
Nominations for Coach of the Week should be submitted by 10 a.m. every Monday to Jake Krueger, Football Outreach Coordinator, at coachoftheweek@packers.com. Please include the nominee's name, address, school, phone number and reason he/she is deserving of the award.
