Served as defensive coordinator on state championship teams
Destrehan will have a new head coach pacing the sidelines this season, and it might be a familiar face to the players and fans.
DHS Principal Stephen Weber has recommended that Wildcat coordinator Chris Stroud be hired as the school’s head football coach. The St. Charles Parish School Board will have to approve the choice at their Aug. 11 meeting.
Stroud, 45, has been at Destrehan since 2006 and served as defensive coordinator during the school’s back-to-back state championships in 2007 and 2008. Before coming to Destrehan, Stroud was an assistant at Comeaux, Tara, Plaquemines, and East St. John.
If the board approves his hire, Stroud will replace Stephen Robicheaux, who has coached Destrehan for the last nine years. Robicheaux left his post after he was named the school district’s Coordinator of Security, Safety and Emergency Preparedness.
Robicheaux believes that Stroud is the perfect choice to take the reigns of the football program.
“I’m really excited about it,” he said. “Destrehan has been a special place for me for years and I just tried to continue the great tradition that the school has had. Chris fits that same mold.
“He knows the game, but he also knows our program. He’s a hard worker and he did everything that was asked of him.”
That familiarity with the school is one of the reasons Robicheaux feels that Stroud will have an easy transition into the head coach’s role.
“The kids know what to expect from him,” Robicheaux said. “He’s had a big role at Destrehan, and was not only our defensive coordinator, but he was in charge of summer workouts and the weight room.
“He’s not going to come in and change everything up, but he will add his own personal touch and I think make the program better.”
Stroud, who calls the Destrehan head coaching position one of the best jobs in the state, said the chance to lead the program is a blessing.
“We’ve got a great program here and hopefully we can keep it going and make it a little better,” he said. “Even if the program stays on the same track, it’s pretty special.”
Stroud said that he did have an advantage over the 11 other applicants because of the timing of the hire, but added that he has the credentials to take over the program.
“The timing did work in my favor, but I’ve been a part of this program for five years and we’ve won some big games over the years,” he said. “I’ve had a big role in that.”
And because he’s had a long tenure at the school, Stroud believes that everything will run smoothly.
“When you’re a coach, you not only have to be familiar with the players, but you have to get to know the faculty, staff and community,” he said. “I already have that familiarity and to me that’s huge.”
The Wildcats will play in the Ed Reed Jamboree at Hahnville High School on Aug. 26. They kick off the season on Sept. 3 when they host Helen Cox.
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