For as far back as both Saguaro Head Coach Jason Mohns and Saguaro Star Christian Kirk can remember, it’s been the two of them together on the football field.
Mohn’s met Kirk for the first time when Christian was in just the fourth grade as his Pop Warner Coach. Little did both of them know that it would be the start of a bond that would see both flourish to incredible success through the years.
“I coached Christian from fourth grade on and when he was in fourth grade, he looked like the Jack-in-the-Box commercial where his son is running around with the helmet on and they are trying to figure out which one’s the kid,” Mohns joked. “It’s bitter-sweet. I am really, really proud of the kid. I am excited for him and his future and he is going to continue to do great things.”
It all began for the two as part of the NYS League’s Scottsdale Argonauts with Mohns as the Coach and Kirk as the playmaker and at times the quarterback. They would win two Pop Warner national championships and that was just the start.
When Kirk arrived at Saguaro as a freshman, Mohns was with the varsity team as an assistant coach under John Sanders. He took over as head coach during Kirk’s sophomore season and has held that role ever since. The two together at Saguaro have gone 46-7 with two state championships and Kirk this season became Arizona’s all-time leader in receiving yards and touchdowns.
This coming Saturday at Sun Devil Stadium for the division III state championship game against Williams Field, the two will be on the sidelines together for the final time as a tandem that has lasted almost a decade.
“It’s going to be weird after it is all over after about seven years of playing for him, looking to the sideline and not seeing him there,” stated Kirk. “He’s helped mold me into a true football player and I wouldn’t have any other guy coach me for my last high school game.”
“We really want one more good run together,” added Mohns. “It’s not goodbye. It’s just the end of an era and I am really proud of him and excited to see him continue to do big things. But we want one more great effort out of him.”
Kirk’s time as a high school student is just weeks from coming to an end. After the state championship game, he will be graduating early and enrolling early in the college he ultimately chooses. That decision will be made on December 17th.
“I was talking about it with my friends recently and they are definitely sad,” mentioned Kirk. “They want to spend more time with me. But it’s going to be a new chapter and I have been looking forward to that.”
Saguaro and Williams Field kick-off at 11am on Saturday from Sun Devil Stadium for the Division III crown.
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Jared Cohen
A born and bred Arizonan, Jared has had great passion for the hometown teams all his life. He now channel's that passion into covering the pro, college and high school teams around the state as a Multimedia Reporter for Sports360AZ.